Pre-wedding Fun

Tomorrow this little boy becomes a husband! My baby, Son #2, will walk down the aisle with his bride! Where did the time go?

Today we attended the Bridesmaid Luncheon, helped decorate for the reception, had a rehearsal and rehearsal dinner! The luncheon was held in a beautiful mansion called Fountainview. It was raining/pouring so I didn't get pictures outside. This is a gingerbread house, which was on display in the parlor , that is a replica of the house!

It was decorated from floor to ceiling- there were 73 trees!

The bride (in the center) with some of the bridesmaids.....

It was beautiful!!!! Let the tears begin.......

Thrifty Thursday

I have my Thrifty tablescape set for company! My Mom and SIL will be here soon for the wedding! Maybe if we eat by candle light they will not see the dust and pug hair all over my house!

These plates are sold at T@rget, but I found them at Goodwill for $1. They are by Christopher Radko.

The goblets came from Kroger (also $1) and the red ribbon and holly go very well with the plates. The napkins are tucked into little Santa boots that I have collected from thrift stores and yard sales.

The candle holders are another thrift store bargain. They are by Arthur Court and I paid $.50 each for them!

I guess someone didn't think these salt and pepper shakers were as cute as I did. They were also at a thrift store, brand new, still in the box!

This year I used a silver tree as the centerpiece-

I made a quick trip to Angel's today to pick up a Christmas gift and I saw these spoons being put out in a booth. I didn't take a before picture -but they were black. I like tarnished silver- but that was extreme! They polished up great!

Love these that have a monogram!

Be sure to check out the other treasures at Leigh's place. It is always inspiring to see what other people have found!

Welcome to Bedford Falls!

The first Christmas I spent with my hubby (before we were married) -he gave me an engagement ring and I gave him the beginning of our first Christmas village. The "It's a Wonderful Life" village was retired that year. I have found a few more pieces on ebay over the years. They have gotten harder to come by and more expensive! This year the village had to move to the main hall since the dining room is still a construction site. I have had to edit my Chistmas decorations dramatically since the dining room has always been the center of the celebration!

Each year we love to watch the movie. This is the church.

The old Granville house and Mary's house....

Martini's Bar
Anderson's Building and Loan
The Bijou Theater and Gower Drugs
We have not had movie night with the movie yet, but that is one of our must-do traditions! This is now officially Wedding Week! 6 more days!

Victorian Front Porch Tour

Many years ago my new husband and I stood on a corner in front of a shabby Victorian house. We had a blended family with 4 children and a baby on the way. We dreamed of living in one of these big old homes where we could have more room for our growing family. It was December and the city was walking through the neighborhood enjoying the Victorian Front Porch Tour. The historic homes were decorated with Santas, elves, angels, and Victorian people. It was magic!!!

By the time that "baby" started Kindergarten we lived in that house and were in the process of restoring it! We are still in the process....the "baby" is now 13. We will never be done, but it is a work of love!

The Porch Tour is 17 years old. It started when my former neighbor, artist Jan Jones, had some life sized paper mache Santas that were not being used that Christmas. She and some of the other neighbors decided to sit up some displays on a few porches for the city to enjoy. It grew every year!

The porches are lit up each night for a driving tour starting Wednesday, December 9th. On Saturday the streets are closed at 5:30 to traffic so that people can stroll on the streets, enjoy entertainment on many of the porches and get a closer look at the displays. Many of the neighbors dress up in Victorian costumes to greet the guests. And it is free! It is Opelika's gift to the community. Here are a few pictures from last year!

The Tree

The tree is different this year! It has to be relocated to the parlor, near the stairs. I took the bottom 4 feet off, so this is the top 8 feet of the tree. Since it is much shorter I thought that it would stand up without support...I was SO wrong! The morning after I put it up - Lulu took it down! Now it is tied to the stairs.

I combined ornaments from our "Wonderful Life" tree with a few of the smaller ornaments from the big tree.

Tomorrow we set up for the Victorian Porch Tour. The figures have been delivered to the porches. We will go around to each porch and arrange the pieces, add snow and dust with glitter! I sure hope it does not rain!!!!

Pigeon Forge

We drove north to Pigeon Forge on Wednesday. Traffic was bad and it took a looooonnnggg time!

We stayed in a cute cabin on the top of a mountain. It had all the comforts of home plus a few extras! A big chair next to the fireplace for Eli....

And a soft couch for Bitsey.....
A loft for the Boy...

With a pool table!

The Pugs thought we had lost our minds, but they adjusted to the change! They really didn't like to go outside. They were happy to sit by the fire and they got the rare treat of sleeping with us at night!

The cabin was hanging of the side of the mountain -near the top! This is the driveway and road.....

Much too narrow for me!!!
But, I did like the hot tub on the deck- as long as I kept my eyes closed so I could not tell how far down the drop off was!We had Thanksgiving dinner at the Dixie Stampede, which was great. You have to eat with your hands! A whole chicken, pork roast, baked potato, corn on the cob, vegetable soup, garlic/cheese rolls, and apple turnovers!
On Friday we went to some outlets- it was very crowded!
I loved the blue trees at The Christmas Place!

The boy got a BB gun at Knifeworks.

And yes....we bought one pair and got two free!

My cowboys!

Smokey Mountain Thanksgiving

We had a fun trip to Pigeon Forge for Thanksgiving and we took the Pugs! I'll put up some pictures when I get my house back in order!!