A Simple Wish.

"The world is round and the place which may seem like the end may also be only the beginning." - Ivy Baker Priest

I am always impressed with the cleverness of time, how it often just slips right through my fingers before I realize another year has passed. As my thoughts turn more reflective, I cant help but feel a few tiny twinges of regret for things missed, friends and family lost, mistakes, shortcomings and disappointments. With new beginnings on the horizon it is only logical we must put an end to other means such as these. To truly start with a clean slate we must forgive ourselves as well as those around us and truly welcome in a New Year with a clean conscience and a light heart.

As tradition in my family, today is the day we take a few minutes aside to truly reflect on the years accomplishments and fall backs. On one slip of paper we write our regrets, and place it into a black box. On the other slip of paper we typically write for something we hope to gain in return. Typically writing down "New Plasma TV" is not the type of thing were going for. Try to aim for something a bit more meaningful, perhaps one of last years shortcomings was 'impatience', and this years goal is to 'be patient and forgiving'. Write everything down and place it in a white box. Before the New Years arrival, toss both of the boxes in the fire and say "good riddance".

"Honor the New Year with a farewell toast- welcome the New Year within. Offer thanks. Celebrate how far you have come, how much you have learned, and the glorious woman you really are. Happy New Year." -Sarah Ban Breathnach

From both Mr. Major and I, we wish you a Healthy, Happy and Safe New Year, filled with Simple Abundance.

That’s Mrs. Messy to You.

As If I didnt have enough going on right??

Oh what an interesting few days its been, and while I haven’t been able to physically blog, I have been blogging mentally- but I feared I would scare most of you away with some not so lady-like euphemisms. Monday found me waking up earlier then usual to walk the dog, I some how managed to miss my husband leaving for work so I was promptly locked out of the house in 30* weather in my PJ’s- with no cell phone, coat or key. Typically I would walk over to a neighbors and ask to use the phone but I don’t have my husbands new number memorized. So I was forced into breaking the back door window (which needed to be replaced anyways.) It was still a sad day.

I did manage to get my hands on a new and very old piece of furniture for our home. My father-in-law gifted us with a 300 year old vanity. Apart from the missing knobs its in relatively good shape and shouldn’t take too much time to clean up. I’m already in love with it.

 

As messes go I have managed to start a new one. I can honestly say this is the first project where I am questioning my own sense of style, but something keeps pushing me forward so I am really crossing my fingers that it turns out okay. The down stairs bathroom has been on my target list for sometime now and since I don’t have the means- or the will power to remodel another bathroom for at least a year I am making a strong attempt at making this one more tolerable. I cant emphasize enough how much I truly hate the teal tile. Oddly enough I adore the colors blue and yellow together. So I am attempting to meld everything together in the hopes it flows a bit better then it does at the moment.

These are the Before....

 

Tomorrow I will install a new light fixture to replace this lovely thing.

I have already replaced out the crappy shower head I have hated since day one.

 

The walls in progress.

Here’s my dilemma. My original plan was to paint the cabinets electric blue, then put a coat of white crackle paint over the top.

After it dries I am going to line the three back walls with this wonderful fabric I found.

But now that I have it painted blue, I kind of like it solid. Should I go crackle paint, or should I leave it alone? I just don’t know. What do you think? :)

The List.

As the New Year approaches many of my thoughts begin to turn toward the new leaf the world is itching to turn over. Mr. Major and I have been discussing the prospect for turning our home into a more organic and green friendly house. So in preparation we both sat down today and designed our latest and greatest project for Our Little 1900’s house; A Raised bed Veggie Garden.

Initially we were planning on doing the typical in ground garden, but after some research we discovered we liked the look and style of raised bed gardening. Not to mention most raised bed gardens have the advantage of heating up faster than traditional in ground gardens, which will promote faster growing, healthier plants. We decided to place it on the east side of our lot since that side gets the most sun.

Of course this lead to and ‘Odd Job’ list making party- hosted by me.

While I am realistic that not all of these things will be checked off in the coming year, I would say the good majority of them could and will be- slashed off my list like Zorro. What’s on your new year’s resolution list?

A very Victorian Christmas Indeed

"If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Then quit. There's no point in being a damn fool about it." -W. C. Fields

First and Foremost I would just like to say this is the 100th Post I have made for Confessions of a New / Old Home Owner, and I just wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who takes the time out of their busy day to read, your comments, compasion and encouragement make writing that much more pleasant. Thank you everyone.

Our Christmas evening was a flurry of hustle and bustle- but everything ended up near perfect. I must admit I was concerned at times about how the food would come out- considering most of my recipes came from a cook book so old it used terms like “in a sauce pan over the fire”- however I was entirely delighted to find everything was delicious and was more then flattered by the requests for recipes.

One very surprising part of the meal was the plum pudding- that actually turned out wonderfully considering it took 7 hours to steam to perfection before being doused in rum and set aflame! The guests really seemed to enjoy the Cake Charms hidden with-in each piece of Plum Pudding, which foretold each person’s future for the coming year.

Another highlight of the evening were some of the parlor games we played after dessert and coffee had been served. I think the chosen favored game of the evening was the Name Game. A game in which each person pulls a famous / Well Known person’s name from a Hat and with out looking tapes it to their own forehead for everyone else to see, and then asks questions inquiring until they can figure out who the person is.

The whole evening was a complete success- something I hope to repeat for many years. I hope everyone of you had a lovely Christmas! Without further adieu, the parade of pictures!

As you can see, this was coppers first Christmas!

This is the alley cat I am slowly taking under my wing, I herd him wandering around one night meowing in the alley behind our home so I have been feeding him when ever he comes around but I havent been able to get close enough to pet him. Ive already taken to calling him Thomas. Tom Cat for short. ;)

This was the final table setting...

The beautiful Yule log cake...

Friends Enjoying some Parlour Games...

And lastly the latest addion to the sunroom, which is fast becoming my favorite reading room...

For anyone who is interested in the recipes, I have copied them all onto printable recipe cards, just click and print!

Christmas Placesettings & Freebies

Christmas is tenderness for the past, courage for the present, hope for the future. It is a fervent wish that every cup may overflow with blessings rich and eternal, and that every path may lead to peace. - Unknown

Today was Phase 1 of Cleaning, which as most things go turned into Laundry day. While there's still a lot of unresolved plans for our Victorian Christmas Dinner, I figured sitting down to an elegant meal in my birthday suit would ruin the mood. So in between loads I managed to sew the linen napkins I needed for the final touches on the table. Ten napkins later, I decided to do a trial run to see how everything pieced together. Not too bad huh?

The quote at the top of my post is actually the saying I put on all of the name cards. Everything came out better then I had imagined it would. If you are wondering how in the world to make cloth napkins, here is a wonderful tutorial @ Skip To My Lou just click HERE.

As Christmas Eve approaches I know everyone is in a mad rush to find the perfect recipe, or drinks to serve for their party. If your hoping to put a new twist on a old favorite, Here’s a easy and AMAZING tasting recipe for Homemade Apple Cider. My mother just discovered this recipe, and I couldn’t pass it up. The second recipe is for Lavender Sugar Cookies. Click on each recipe card to enlarge and print- Oh and Enjoy! - V

Bake til' you Drop?

"I hope that whoever you are, you escape this place. I hope that the worlds turns, and that things get better. But what I hope most of all is that you understand what I mean when I tell you that, even though I do not know you, and even though I may never meet you, laugh with you, cry with you, or kiss you, I love you. With all my heart, I love you." – Valerie (V for Vendetta)

Yesterday was a non-stop whirl-wind of baking- and I was a force even the Cookie Monster would not reckon with. After 14 hours of baking (allotting 30 min. meals) I managed to bake 7 types of cookies, and while that might not sound like a lot, believe me it was!

So today I am setting to the task of packaging everything in these adorable little boxes I picked up at Michaels, before I head off to the cookie exchange. Here’s the final product of my hardwork and labor. (From Top to Bottom, Left to Right ) Lavender Sugar Cookies, Cranberry-Orange Pin-wheel Cookies, Chocolate Bark, Coconut Macaroons, Peppermint Blossoms, Caramel Thumbprints, & Peppermint Bark.

Just a side note, I have been making Lavender Sugar Cookies for years- and they are still my all time favorite. If you havent tried them- you must!

The latest update with my dad: The doctors are debating whether to continue with the dialysis because they discovered he has a bone infection in both his legs. The medication they need to prescribe for his infection will affect his kidney function. It all seems like a draw to me, and it’s extremely hard to know what to do in a case as complex as his. I certainly do not envy his doctors but I am hoping the answer comes soon. Thank you all for your prayers for his recovery, they are deeply appreciated.

Thank you all so much for your support in this time of need.

Inch by Inch

"When one door of happiness closes, another opens, but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one that has been opened " - Helen Keller

The bathroom is inching its way towards the finish line. I have managed to re-hang everything on the walls with a few small exceptions. It took half an hour and three people to move the tub back in, but as you can see it is back in. Fortunately I had the foresight to tinker with the legs so that the tub is tilting slightly forward to aid in draining better. I am pretty convinced stagnant water and harsh cleaners were the main culprits in why we need the tub to be re-enameled.

The toilet should be installed tonight. And that's the finishing touch for now.

In other news, Dad was put on dialysis this weekend, so its not looking too good as far as him being out for Christmas. We went and visited with him for a while on Saturday, ironically enough it was the best mood I've seen him in, in a very long time.

Today I have some groceries to pick up and then its going to be non-stop baking in preparation for my cookie exchange and Victorian Christmas Dinner. I hope everyone is keeping warm, Florida finally got hit with some real Christmas weather. Were basking in the 40's at the moment, perfect sweater weather. Happy Baking!

Running Around Town

Today was a lot of running, but I got most of what I wanted done with. Which is always nice. I am pleased to say that I finally got around to making and installing those window / plant shelves in the kitchen. The ones I had been pining for ever since I saw the idea in a magazine all those months ago. Not having curtains or blinds in the kitchen has always bothered me, but in all honesty I hate curtains in kitchens. They give me goose bumps. Needless to say the new shelves are up and I LOVE THEM!!!

From Collages

While doing laundry this morning I caught a segment on TV about homemade gifts and one of the items they were featuring was Homemade Bath Salts. So I decided to make some of my own as small gifts for friends and family and I did a little tutorial for anyone interested. The entire project cost me a little under $15.00 and it makes 35-40 satchels. Please keep in mind this is my take on the recipe- feel free to change it up to suit your needs. (You can use various scents for this project I picked three different Scents: Lavender, Rose and Lilly of the Valley)

From Collages

Materials:

3 Cups. - Epsom Salt

3 - Small Vials of Essential / Fragrance Oils

12 - Assorted Organza Bags (Drawstring kind are best)

3- Mixing Bowls & Spoons

2-3 TBSP. Dried Lavender Flowers / Rose Petals

Optional: Decorative paper and ribbon

(THIS RECIPIE WILL YEILD 15 SATCHELS - 5 PER SCENT)

1. Place a cup of Epsom salt into each bowl.

From Collages

2. If you are using dried flower blooms or petals place them in each bowl accordingly.

3. Place a eye dropper full of essential oil into each bowl.

From Collages

From Collages

4. Mix each bowl until no clumps are left.

5. Spoon 2-3 TBSP. of each bath salt into the organza bags. Tie each bag closed with a double knot. (The entire bag can be tossed into the bath water- that way no one is left with a mess in their tub!)

From Collages

6. Optional: Design and decorate tags for each bag that explain what the scent is. For my design I labeled mine Morning, Noon and Night and had corresponding scents that will help relax, revitalize or wake you during those times.

Hope you enjoy making these as much as I did and let me know how yours turned out! -V

Christmas Daze

Dads back in the hospital. It wouldnt be Christmas with out absolutley everything willy nilly. They did a heart cath on him yesterday, but they plan on keeping him another few days since it looks like he has a bone infection. I have no idea what it means, but its most likley not good.

I did manage to visit my mother today at school (shes a teacher). It was nice to see her with some students who appreciate her as much as she deserves. She seemed totally excited about her gallery opening up and her students were as well.

Did some light shopping, picked up these wonderful glitter balls that inspired me into a pretty center piece.

After which I came home and did a totally easy and yummy chocolate brittle recipie. Seriously, this is one of my new favorites! Try it! Chocolate Brittle Surprise

The Bathroom is Nearly Complete...

Yes folks. You read correctly.

The last few days have been hellish, but I have managed to get everything stapled, nailed, hammered, sanded and painted.

This morning I applied the final coat of white paint to all of the trim and touched up the wall paint. Then I zipped off to Lowes to pick up a few plumbing supplies. After which I spent the rest of the evening assembling and installing the sink and faucet.

As you can see the chandelier is installed as well, which was a first for yours truly! I managed to conquer my electrical fears and hooked the entire thing up all on my own! I was seriously giddy by the time my husband came home.

Tomorrow we have two of our friends coming over to help move the clawfoot tub back in. I made a sad attempt to move it with my husband before I decided there are some things women just should not attempt. And lifting a cast iron tub is one of them.

Once the tub is in place, the toilet can be put back. *cringe* and then we will be back in business! (no pun intended) I am so entirely excited and proud of the entire outcome. Its exactly what I dreamed of! So with out further delay....

From Finished Bath

From Finished Bath

From Finished Bath

From Finished Bath