THE POLKA DOT DEBUTANTE » Decorations

Wonderful Crafty Friends

lee — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 22:23:49 +0000

We are having a wonderful Christmas Day. First there was Egg Nog French Toast for breakfast with the last of the infamous homemade egg nog. Then there was the opening gifts with our family while sipping tea and listening to Christmas music. And now Rick is hard at work in the kitchen making the fillings for the homemade wontons and Szechuan green beans that we have for dinner every year. I love all the tradition and warmth of this special day.

Before the rolling of the wontons, I wanted to put up a quick post about the wonderful homemade ornaments I’ve received this year. I so love having such wonderful crafty friends in my life. This little beauty was made by Jennifer. She is hand embroidered.

Meara made this wonderful ornament and made each of the beads from fimo. Wow! I love the colors and how she placed them in a gradation.

And lastly, here is a charming little acorn hand knitted by Heather. Am I blessed or what!?

Our Christmas Party

lee — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 06:55:37 +0000

Every year on the weekend before Christmas we have a party. It’s our time to host a big gathering and we really look forward to it. This has been a really rough fall for me with two surgeries and the flu. I wasn’t sure how we were going to pull it off but we did it with a LOT of help from our family and friends. Mom came out for a week and helped with the baking and the decorating. She had to fly home before the party but it was wonderful having her here.

Liza did some baking once she got home from school. Jenny and Liza decorated the tree.

There is always lots of food, but the big draw of the evening is the homemade eggnog. Our good friends Meara and Philip shared the secret recipe several years back and it’s become a Christmas tradition. Philip and I get together to make it every year. This years batch was especially good.

Rick and I make the main dishes, but lots of people bring food. Without any preplanning, there is always the perfectt mix of salads, veges and desserts to compliment the meal. There is no way to mention each dish, but a special shout out to the makers of the brussel sprouts. You are eternally in my good graces.

The year’s party was especially exciting when my dearest friend Kristy and her family walked through the front door, having come all the way from Walnut Creek, California to surprise me. It’s not often that I’m tongue-tied, speechless and in tears all at the same time. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. They stayed the night and we got to spend a wonderful day together before they had to head for home.

This party always reminds me of how blessed we are to be a part of a wonderful community of friends. Thank you so much and Merry Christmas.

It’s the holidays!

lee — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 05:45:57 +0000

Every year I try and do the Christmas decorations a little differently. I like mixing things up. This year I decided that gold paper cranes would be a great idea. Of course after folding about 40 of them, I started to think maybe it wasn’t such a good idea after all. But I persevered and now there are about 80 of them in my dining room. I love the way they look; festive but subtle. And I like the symbolism. I also had fun in the living room this year and changed things up there as well. See for yourself.