It's Late In The Season

It was late in the Season, but I scurried to downtown Roanoke for a last minute gift.

The little red farm truck was there selling live trees, wreaths and greenery for those who had yet to don their home with the fragrance of a forest.

You simply can't beat the look, hustle and bustle of an old downtown that takes you back to days of yore, beeping car horns and shoppers scurrying across  the busy streets.

Pay to park lots, parking meters, and high rise parking buildings help to manage the scenes, and if my husband could survive there, I would choose to have an old. small apartment over a store.

The lifestyle would suit me well.

My little Elf On A Shelf girl would have come along,

But downtown simply had no place for horse parking.

Neighbors stopped by with goodies in a cellophane wrapped box,

just one more thing for us to eat!  But we love that we are surrounded by good people.

 

A pretty flower arrangement from my husband's mother arrived, and it's nice to know that at 87 she still thinks of us each Christmas with a display that brightens our home.

Rowdy loves the red and green of Christmas and hiding directly within it is a game he plays each December.

And he was nice enough to think of his girlfriend, Izzy, and brought a matching Christmas scarf home for her from his visit to the vet.

They are simply stylin' in their pinecone neck scarvess.

 My husband's present arrived a few weeks early this year and parking it beneath the tree was a problem, so we parked it in the driveway instead.  This photo was the last one taken before those golden leaves in the background fell to the ground from a windstorm followed by the first snow of the season.

So in early December we said goodbye to the golden leaves and hello to the snow of winter.

 

But snow never gets us down.... as long as we can get to the grill life is good!

 

The lights come on with each sundown and  cast their reflections on the rainy, wet driveway,

and we ooh and aaah when we step outdoors with the pups.
It's only right that we should enjoy them, since our home is hidden from the road and only those two homes we share our driveway with can see them.

And my husband brought us home a pink poinsettia from the grocery store this week, a must have each year at this happy time.

I'll say goodbye for a few days now as each and every one of you enjoys YOUR gifts of the Season

and time with your loved ones next to the warmth of your heart fires

and Christmas trees.

Merry Christmas to all!!  

See you soon.

Christmas Decorations

 Our tree with all the trimmings, as well as a few FUN Christmas items scattered about the room are complete for this Christmas season, including my favorite soldier nutcracker, some red trucks, a couple of stockings, Santa, and an Old St. Nick.

 This is our first full sized tree since we left Maryland, making Christmas of 2003 the last one before making a move to Arizona in early 2004, and then to Virginia in 2007.  I don't care for the needles on the floor and having to water a live tree, so here we are with our 9 foot Pine from Lowes.  It rocks!

 Last year we cleaned the storage area in our basement, and after looking at all of our old Christmas Tree decorations decided to toss them into the garbage and start afresh this year.  No really.... they were not even Goodwill worthy.  They were garbage, and this year I decided that since we are at an age where we don't need to have more than what we use around here, I decided on a simple look.... somewhat of what I consider to be a more traditional looking tree.

 The tree came with a great number of pre-installed lights, and I have always loved  the simple look of gold and red ball ornaments.
The red plaid ribbon was a must for me.  You know how some things just make your heart sing?  That's what this ribbon did for me...

 We have never had a worthy Christmas tree skirt, and since the base of the tree covers a large area of the floor, we needed a large skirt.  I googled the size tree skirt I needed and Balsam Hill popped up.  Their tree skirts are pricier than Target or Wal-Mart (my only local options) so I ordered a pretty red quilted skirt and could not be happier!
Totally worth the bucks.

 This metal 'LOVE" heart is from Wal-Mart.  They had three in stock when I purchased it last week, but with just my husband and I, well.... one love heart does the trick.

 

Every home has a different idea about what the perfect tree is for them and decorates accordingly.  I see so many different looks as I hop from blog to blog, but I always come back and give a big sigh of love when I see the photos of our tree.  Bright, traditional and eye-candy worthy.
Hope yours will be one that YOU love and that speaks to your family and friends as they enter your home during your Holiday parties and gatherings.

Always be true to your heart and who you are as you decorate your home any time of the year, but especially at Christmas.
Love to each and every one of you as the end of the year draws nearer.
XOX

Falling Into November

We are falling into November now.... the first few days of blue skies, sunshine, warm days and cool nights.

Today my spouse was busy helping a neighbor with some electrical wiring so I headed to town to check out a Christmas trees at Lowes which he had told me was REALLY nice.

We haven't put up a Christmas tree in many years, other then a few small table top trees around the house, so off to Lowes I headed since I truly want a tree this year.... a BIG tree.

He was right.... the tree was gorgeous, so I brought it home.  The box weighed a bit over 100 pounds, so once we got it loaded by hand cart into the house, the pups were hankerin' for a ride in the truck which we had left with the rear door sitting open.  Hubby headed back to the neighbor's house and I took the spoiled, rotten pups for a ride just down to the end of our road and back.  

Here's the video on Vimeo.

My Movie 1 from Diane Cayton-Hakey on Vimeo.

Our Easy Peasy Christmas Tree

 For quite a few years now we have opted out of purchasing a Christmas tree.

 Every November or early December we discuss having a real Christmas tree, and by 'real' I don't mean a live tree, but rather a 'life sized' tree.

 One where you actually put it up, decorate it, and then take it down each year.

 And then we decide it's just more work than we want to put forth.

And more money than we wish to spend considering tree cost, lights cost, ornaments cost, tree topper, tree skirt.

I mean, have you priced what it would cost to start from scratch on a tree?

UGH

So my husband goes to our basement storage area and brings up the little monkey decorated tree that is only three feet tall.

When Christmas is over. you simply pick it up from the top with one hand and carry it back to the basement.

It gives us the mood of Christmas with it's cheery little red chili lights, and there is one monkey on the tree to represent each grandchild.

 And THAT my friends is how you do a Christmas tree the easy peasy lazy way.

No muss.

No fuss.

A Pushy Little Tree

 Virginia offered up a couple of sunshine days for us this week, and on those days I take the pups for a walk down the road.

It's a pretty walk that goes right past a couple of mountain views along the way and golfers enjoying themselves on the golf course we pass by.

Anyway... enough of the fluff talk. 

We don't have a real Christmas tree, or perhaps I should say we DIDN'T have a real Christmas tree up until the walk.

You see..... on that day, this crazy little Charlie Brown 'wanne be' Christmas tree followed me home.

It tugged at the heel of my boot and after trying unsuccessfully to shake free of it, it grabbed onto the hem of my coat!

How pathetic and also aggressive it was, so what choice did I have but to let it tag along home with the pups and I as we completed our walk.

 He.. yes, I said HE, noticed a stray ornament lying on a table top and told me how he had always and forever wanted to grow up to be a Christmas tree with shiny ornaments, lights and tinsel to wear as his Holiday garb and bring joy to all who saw him.

 

I didn't have any tinsel, only the ornament to offer him, and the little fella smiled at my generosity when I hung it from his branches.

 I told him he was rather scruffy looking and although the ornament garb truly did help his appearance, I suggested that he spend Christmas on our outdoor deck.

That way he could look out over the other pine trees and not feel so all alone.

 But he insisted that he would be no problem if I would just let him come inside and said he would not shed even one needle or make any kind of mess in the house.

 "And besides", he begged... "the nights have gotten colder and I am so scrawny that it is hard to stay warm.

Please let me stay with you indoors".

 *sigh*

My heart began to soften and I relented and let him come inside.

  

 He is now co-habitating with the onions and the garlic in the kitchen,

 

and although it didn't sound like such a great idea in the beginning,

I must admit that the little fella has grown on me.

 We have become friends for Christmas.

But I swear... if he poops any needles on my countertops,

it's out the door for this pushy guy.

And that's the story of how a real live Christmas tree came to be living in our house this year.

Ho Ho Ho.