Tis the season...

     Right after Thanksgiving you'll see me dragging out all the decorations for the Christmas season, and boy do I make a mess!  And I love every minute of it...well, as long as my lights are working!  Here are some rooms that provide lots of inspiration.

Serene and natural...
                                                                    Source: camillaathome.blogspot.com via Maureen on Pinterest

So beautiful...
                                                                 Source: urbanfarmgirlandco.blogspot.com via Maureen on Pinterest

                                                                      Source: madamecupcake.tumblr.com via Maureen on Pinterest

Thanksgiving...

     I swear I was cooking for about 10 hours yesterday, and my little piggies are a wee bit tired, but no matter!  It was a fabulous food filled extravaganza of fabulousness, and my pants are feeling a bit snugger than they did the day before, but it's the holidays so fa-get-a-bout-it!!  After starting the day headed out to the grocery store for what felt like the fifteenth time for (I swear) more butter, as if I needed to add more to the 10 pounds that were already circulating through my Thanksgiving dishes, it was time to make the flowers and table scape for our meal.  This is one of my favorite things to do and every year it's a little bit different.

It included this artichoke on a giant stem which I thought I might need a chainsaw to cut, but my handy dandy knife finally did the job...who knew artichokes grew on a giant bean stalk situation?!?
 See the artichoke minus the giant bean stalk situation?  It's lookin kind of great don't ya think?




And then back to the cooking...corn bread for the stuffing...
Setting up the dishes...
 Definitely time for a much needed glass of Pinot Noir...
Here comes the deep fried turkey!!  There is my naughty monkey Wags planning out his turkey stealing strategy...
Carving time...
 Green beans with bacon and onion...
Roasted pears stuffed with gorgonzola, wrapped in bacon and drizzled with honey...
Then, time to light the candles...

And eat!


 And after all that hard work, we are filled to the rim...

And then the sun sets on another Thanksgiving that we can all be grateful for...


Happy Thanksgiving!!

     Thanksgiving is probably my most favorite holiday of all.  As much as I love everything Christmas, Thanksgiving centers around spending time preparing something that my family cares deeply about...food!  Being thankful for the many things that we are so very lucky to have, and the friends and family we can share them with...and food!  There's the Macy's parade which is an absolute must, my very own special sweetheart coffee cake that I have been preparing for several hours the day before, deep fried turkey (more on this later), dressing, creamed onions, green beans with bacon and onion, and did I mention the pies?  Homemade pumpkin and Old Fashioned Cream made with my very own crust, because store bought will not do...pish posh no, no, no!

                                                                           Source: pinterest.com via Maureen on Pinterest

                                                                           Source: theinspiredroom.net via Maureen on Pinterest

And then there is the table...I'm loving the look of these...
                                                                   Source: theheartoftheseahome.typepad.com via Maureen on Pinterest

                                                                          Source: suziebeezie.tumblr.com via Maureen on Pinterest

                                                                           Source: google.com via Maureen on Pinterest
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So here's the thing about the turkey.  I am telling you people that I have been sucked into the deep fried turkey philosophy!  I know I live in the south, but I hail from the land of Hoosiers where we roast a turkey like normal people.  Where you get up at 5 in the morning to stick your 25 pound bird in the oven and baste it every 15-20 minutes.  So I was somewhat horrified when one Thanksgiving we made two turkeys. One made the way I have been making for years...in an oven, and the other fried in a vat of God forsaken vile oil.  And can I just tell you that fried turkey was probably the best thing that I have ever and I do mean EVAH tasted?!  Well it was, and you must all try it, but don't burn down your house in the process!
                                                                           Source: fabulousfoods.com via Michelle on Pinterest

You'll need this after the fried turkey...
                                                                                 Source: vi.sualize.us via Maureen on Pinterest

First fire of the fall season...

    Here in the south, it is finally getting to feel a bit like it's actually fall.  There is a noticeable change in the color of the leaves that wasn't there a couple of weeks ago.  We still get a few warm days, but I am loving the chilly ones that sneak in the most!  Sundays in fall are for football and sitting by the the fire.  It is one of my most favorite things.

Big D has the clicker in hand ready for a busy day of a whole lot of nothin...




Loving the look of lucite...

     As much as I love the look of rich antique wood, I also have an affinity for something a bit more modern.  Something that adds a bit of glam to a space.

Loving the look of lucite...
                                                                     Source: apartmenttherapy.com via Maureen on Pinterest

How glam is this?!?
                                                                           Source: 2.bp.blogspot.com via Maureen on Pinterest

Somehow this works!  A little bit country and a little bit rock and roll!
                                                                               Source: pinterest.com via Maureen on Pinterest

It livens up what could have been a bit of a boring space...
                                                                            Source: Uploaded by user via Maureen on Pinterest

In an office...
                                                                                Source: thedecorista.com via Maureen on Pinterest
                                                                             Source: google.ca via Maureen on Pinterest

Or the living room...
                                                                         Source: prettyspace.tumblr.com via Maureen on Pinterest

                                                           Source: us.mc310.mail.yahoo.com via Maureen on Pinterest

Seriously...I love Christmas people...

     Here's the thing.  I am that annoying person everyone knows who, after Halloween, is all a buzz with thoughts of sparkly lights, wood burning fires, batches of cookies and buckeyes, dreaming of snow covered lawns, and ice cycles hanging from my roof...and I live in Dallas.  I'm the one who hums Christmas tunes around the house in November, and frantically searches the XM stations for the newly assigned Christmas song station...I actually google it on the off chance I might have (God forbid) missed one while perusing the satellite dial.  I'm the one who watches Elf, The Holiday, and Love Actually on an endless loop to the point that Big D wants to potentially commit a felony.  I'm the one who felt the need to tell my barista after viewing the freshly unpacked Starbucks red Christmas cups, "You don't even know how much you have made my day!"...that be me.  So I thought I would share my love of all things Christmas by showing you some pics from this amazing Christmas store that has EV-ER-Y-TH-HING!!!  It's called Decorator's Warehouse in a suburb of Dallas, and it is a winter wonderland!




You can't see it in this picture, but the LED ice cycle lights actually have a lighted drip, drip, drip...

 Cute lighted bear, but he's a wee little 'spensive!
 I love this bear playing hockey on the mirror...
Very Dr. Suess...