Christmas Mischief and Mishaps

Anything I would post about seems so frivilous after hearing the news from Connecticut yesterday.
I watched the coverage and was actually disgusted by the reporters asking for interviews from the children and their parents. I think they could have used a little more compassion.

I watched the interview with the teacher who locked her kids in the bathroom. What a brave, compassionate young woman. She is a true hero and if I had kids I would want her to be their teacher.

Anyway, I did write a post about my Christmas decoration progress today. If you want to escape the sadness for a few minutes read on:

I am finally getting down to decorating the condo for Christmas.  Last weekend, I decorated the mantle in the dining room but I am still tweaking it.  Tonight, I worked on the fireplace in the living room. It really doesn't take me long to decorate the condo since it's a small space.

This week I had a little mishap and it set me back on my decorating. On Tuesday, I fell in the parking lot where I work and I broke my nose. I tumbled feet flying behind me and I crashed onto the concrete face first. Well, first my knee then my hands then my nose and my forehead. What a bloody mess! I had my first ambulance ride and I spent about 3 hours in the emergency room.

I am one lucky girl. I did not have a concussion although I hit my head and I didn't break my kneecap although I hit my knee before breaking my nose. Just a broken nose, sore knee and facial cuts.
I think I have a guardian angel. It could have been so much worse!

Back to the fun stuff. I have a prelit garland that I use on the fireplace in the living room. This year I dressed it up with some gold leaves, gold pinecones and strands of gold beads. I wanted it to really shimmer.

I took about 10 seconds after I'd finished the fireplace for Percy to investigate. I think he can read, he went right to the stocking with his name on it. I should have known shimmery things would attract a curious cat.

How long do you think the garland will last on the fireplace? I am guessing not even 24 hours.

Right now he is back to resting on the cable box so hopefully he's done sniffing around. I'll let you know how it goes.

Cozy by the fire

"There is no place more delightful than one's own fireplace"- Marcus Tullius Cicero

With more wintry weather headed this way, I think we will just sit by the fire and relax this weekend.

The china cabinet and fireplace

The china cabinet and the fireplace arrived! The china cabinet was moved from my Dad's house to mine. I hired the same guy who moved my furniture from my apartment to the condo and he also moved the estate sale furniture for me (the sofa and chair).

So there it is in my dining room. Isn't it beautiful? It sat in my Dad's basement since the 1960's when my grandmother moved in with my parents. My parents did not have a dining room so there was no place for it.




It was covered with a cloth but still there was quite a bit of dust and dirt on it. When I got it home I gave it a nice bath of Murphy's oil soap and it cleaned up beautifully.



I absolutely love the lock and key.




Here's another view.



I decided to decorate it for Christmas. A brass sleigh, one of my favorite pieces.




A vintage reindeer and bottle brush tree.




I was pleased to find out that three of the shelves had hooks for hanging teacups. I immediately took out my favorites and hung them up.



On to the fireplace! Yeah, it arrived in two boxes but not at the same time so I was a little panicked at first. The first box weighed 70 pounds so it was a bit heavy to lift. I slid it into the living room.




I hate assembling things especially big heavy things. I have a mental block when it comes to anything mechanical. I was going to pay someone to put it together for me and I told my sister of my plan.

She said, "Lane, I think we can do it". I said, "No, I don't mind sitting and reading the instructions to someone but I am not good with a screwdriver." So we agreed. I got the easy job and she was on her hands and knees with the screw driver.

To make it nicer, I played my Christmas Cds. Honestly, whenever I have assembled something with a man we end up fighting. My sister was so calm it was actually a pleasure. And in the end all she wanted in return was a homemade brownie and a cup of tea. It was quite a bargain.




Here's a closeup of the front piece. I know it's not the real thing but it is still quite nice.





I will eventually wall mount the television and I would like to frame it. For now I think I will have to leave the TV as it is and just put some greenery on the mantel. And I will address the wire cord mess.

Just a few more things I can cross off my to do list before this Saturday's party.