Christmas is almost here!

     I am so incredibly unorganized this year.  I think I say this every year, because every year it happens to be true!  I wish there were three of me, but one of me that was organized would suffice…I don't see that happening anytime soon!

The tree is up…well our fake one is up…

The presents are starting to be wrapped.,.


The ice has come and gone…

And the dogs are still driving me nuts…well, Blue is driving me nuts…

He's always in m'face!  

Countdown to Beach Cheeky and a beachy Christmas!!

     So apparently there will be an early Christmas miracle.  We will definitely have a Beach Cheeky Christmas, because it was finished in the nick of time, with a few minor adjustments that will be fixed over the next couple of weeks.  Big D and my oldest giant child are there now dropping off the first load of house necessities as I write this.  Trying to coordinate furniture deliveries has proven to be super challenging from Dallas.  Big D and giant child had to end up picking up the family room furniture in their U-Haul, because there were no trucks to be had from the delivery company until after Christmas which wouldn't actually work so much for us!  Talk about a minor meltdown…I had one, or two before I figured all this out!  They loaded up with sleeping bags to spend the first night in Beach Cheeky!  And of course there was lots to do!
    
Like setting up the tree…
Which apparently is worse than putting up a real tree according to my 20 year old…

It's been a bit chilly, but at least there's the sun...

And a peek of our wee little peer…
Let's go fishing...

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

    Has the cold arctic front hit you in your neck of the woods yet?  It was nearly 80 degrees in Dallas today and the temperature is dropping quick.  Right now we have dropped to 52 degrees, and by morning it should be hovering around 35!  Even for Texas all over the map weather, that kind of drop is pretty crazy.  I've been trying to get my act together for Christmas spending the evening wrapping a few things to keep myself organized.  Beach Cheeky is moving along great and hopefully (keep your fingers crossed) we will be there for Christmas!  They are frantically putting in landscaping and the final touches on everything.  The appliances are in, the marble is placed, and I have already bought a Christmas tree for the place so they better finish on time!!
     I've lived in many different places and each one has a different feel at Christmas time.  Dallas is by far the most over the top…I mean hello it's Dallas, more is more, big, big, big, yada yada yada.  Growing up in Indiana I experienced lots of snow, but it was never guaranteed in December.

Here's to Christmas's that are filled with lots and lots of snow…
Love the traditional brick and candles in the windows, so simple and beautiful!
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Something in Nantucket…
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A garland laden street…
Somewhere in the country, I want wreathes on the most perfect fence!
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Something simple in white…

In one of my imaginary fantasy lives, I live in the country tending goats, sheep, and quite possibly an adorable cow whilst churning butter and knitting scarves for my 3 dogs…this is my country Christmas yet to be...
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And they shall all live in this perfect blue barn…
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This would be my country front door…
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Surrounded by the snowiest gate…
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Looking at deer from our window…
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I love the snow...

Craving cranberry everything right now!

     I am so excited about the holidays this year I could burst!  I feel like a five year old, seriously.  I have been grooving in my car to Christmas tunes for the past week and I can't quit thinking about all the delish things I want to make, particularly things with cranberries.  The next five weeks are time to pull the fat pants out of your closet people because the proverbial feasting is about to begin.  I have been pinning all kinds of cranberry delicacies that may have to be tried very soon, because well, they look incredible!  They also look like they have significant ass widening potential as well (I mean it is the holidays people, bring out the butter) therefore requiring said fat pants to make an appearance.

Like these Cranberry Scones from Shop Girl, I want them with a nice hot cup of joe!

Or some Glazed Cranberry Orange Bread from Rumbly In My Tumbly
Or how about this insane Cranberry Crumb Cake from Hungry Couple
Yum...

Countdown to Thanksgiving is on!

     Thanksgiving is so very late this year!  I love Thanksgiving and look forward to it every year.  This year especially because all of my kiddos will be home for a few days before it's time to head back to school.  It's such a special day starting with my favorite thing to watch first thing in the morning, The Macy's Parade followed by spending the day cooking, baking, and preparing the table for a the best kind of homemade family dinner.  It seems kind of nuts to spend so many hours preparing something that gets eaten in a matter of minutes, but I think that is what is so special about Thanksgiving.  It is a once a year kind of thing that we love to go kind of nuts about!


     This is one of the few days that we actually use our dining room, which makes me sad because it's one of my favorite rooms in the house!  My baby girl is in charge of setting the table and she usually comes up with a super creative and time consuming way to fold the napkins via Google, which is crazy, but she loves to do it.  I like to make my own flower arrangement and table scape, and switch it up a bit every year.

Two years ago I used a mix of greens with yellow flowers


Last year I went more autumnal using different colors…


Pinterest has a ton of adorable ideas for tables…
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Thanks giving outdoors?
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With blankets?  I love it!
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The most perfect day...

Chilly nights, Les Mis and Beach Cheeky updates...

     There's a frost warning tonight and the pups and I are snuggled up by the fire watching Les Mis, which is only possible because Big D is out of town and well he's not so much a fan of it.  In fact when I was watching it one night Big D strolls through the room wondering, "What kind of trash is this?"  I'll take that as a compliment from his Fast and Loud man crushes, and Gold Rush reality TV obsession...

Who am I?  Who am I? I am Jean Valjean 24601!!!!!

Snuggle time...
Beach Cheeky updates…The floors and driveway are in!!
Love this room, the beams still need to be stained in Minwax Driftwood...


The original plan was to put these pale blue pavers in like they have at Water Color to accent the gray pavers, but they ended up being waayyyyy too expensive so we went with the white, and I think it looks nice...
In other news I decided to go with the bar stool that I liked the most and gave up my swivel option…
I had it slip covered in Nantucket Chambray, a super soft stripe which is washable thank you very much and picked a stain that was close to my floors for the base…


Let's get this beach party started!!

Fabric choices for Beach Cheeky...

     It's getting pretty close with the completion of Beach Cheeky!  The floors are being put in this week followed by all the kitchen and bathroom cabinets and the gynormous kitchen island.  I'm trying to wrap my head around fabric choices and it's making me crazier than the lighting decisions I went through a couple of months ago.  I spent yesterday going to the Fabric Factory and Calico Corners in Dallas and on to another place today, because I am needing to investigate some more!  The more I look, the more confused I get!  My couch fabric is a gray linen fabric called Glyn Linen Metal, and the two swivel chairs are done in the color Patton Denim in linen.
I need to find material for the bar stools, which I am deciding between Ballard Design Marcello and sending them fabric and change the wood color to a driftwood color...love the nail heads here...
Or the more expensive Lee Industries counter stool...ugh, I think this might be my least favorite actually because it looks awkward I think!
What I really love is this Lee Industries slipcovered campaign bar stool, but it doesn't swivel, and I feel like I really need a swivel!

Then there are cushions to pick out for the banquet 
So I've been looking at all of this!
 I love this huge blue paisley on the cream, would be gorgeous in anything, but it's a poly/rayon blend and I want to stick with cottons and linens.  Maybe for a head board, that could be quite pretty...



And this...
Ima definitely gonna lose my mind with potential fabric situation possibilities!