Gingerbread Lane

Sophie and I have a wonderful tradition.  Each December we meet up with one of my friends and her daughter and we visit a local gingerbread house competition.  It's a small one but we love all the details on these houses. After browsing and taking some time to vote for our own favorite, we visit the resort's restaurant for some hot cocoa and treats.  Here are some of my favorite shots......

How adorable are these Wizard of Oz characters?  Adorable enough to win Sophie's vote!

Last year's visit here.

Antique Shopping With Mom

While Mom was here visiting she asked to go back and visit The Sleepy Poet, Charlotte's fun & funky antique store.  Both girls were at school that day and it was the only time I've been there without at least one of my children.  Oh, I was in heaven.  We wandered from aisle to aisle for several hours.  So many things caught my eye....

A vintage strawberry tablecloth...

Purple bottles galore!

A simple candelabra

An adorable owl & moon string art....love it!

A 1970's flavored seating area!  Love those cushions!

What did I actually buy?  Only own small item and it's none of the above. See my next post to find out....

Looking to be uplifted?

Even if just for a moment?

I don't know about you but after Friday's tragic, devastating, horrifying and downright heart-wrenching school shooting, I think I was subconsciously looking to be uplifted during my online browsing over the weekend.  This post crossed my path many times over the last few days and, while I do like that one a lot, it's the below video that really caught my attention and had me coming back for just one more view.  I'm not a child but I still need reassurance that there's goodness in the world.  This video gives me a little bit of hope that we can overcome this kind of devastation.  Even though we may not have lost a direct friend or family member in Newtown, every single one of us lost something.  I hope this video lifts you up for just a moment.....




Note: I discovered this video on Design Mom's Friday post.

Gingerbread Lane

Come take a walk with us down Gingerbread Lane, won't you?

I fell in love with these gorgeous Christmas trees!

A lovely gingerbread Eiffel Tower!

I'd love to take a stroll up this walk. Wouldn't you?

A snowy wedding.

A peek at a Christmas tree in the window. I love the red, green & white candy corn roof. This house took my vote for 1st Place.

A lovely pretzel fence.

A gingerbread country house.  This one took Soph's vote.

Penguins having fun.  No doubt my favorite photo from the day.

Some folks are really talented.

Popcorn snow!

A "Welcome" Mat and some hot cocoa.

I LOVED this roof.

WOW.  Such a gorgeous house!

I especially liked the Christmas lights made of chocolate-coated sunflower seeds!

Gingerbread snow angels!

Elf graffiti.

Trees made of candy!

We had such a lovely time on Gingerbread Lane. I hope you did too!  Thanks for joining us!

Looking for Peace this Holiday Season?

Seriously, this time of year can be so stressful.  I often feel a little bit blue when I see everyone rushing around, being mean to each other in parking lots, and buying up a bunch of junk that they don't need and won't use.  We've all lost a bit of what this entire season is supposed to be about.  When I discovered this song recently, I thought it was the perfect way to relax and reflect.  So, I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do.  Sit down with a cuppa. Close your eyes for a few moments.  If you're like me, you might fall totally asleep.  But that's okay too..

(there's no video, just this image so don't worry about watching!)

Make Your Heart Smile!

There are no words to describe how much I adore this video or how happy it makes me.  I don't want to say more, just watch the video.  There's a good chance it will be the best part of your day today!


 

Oh So Thankful

In honor of my favorite holiday, I'm posting two photos I took at the Thanksgiving Parade this morning:

How fabulous and fun are they?

I am wickedly thankful for so many things but I won't bore you with my lengthy list. I think you already have some idea what I'm thankful for....

Happy, Happy Thanksgiving!

no, No, NO!

Not the compost pile!!!!

Didn't I do my job?

Wasn't I cute enough?

Criky.

V.I.P. in the Neighborhood!

It's been a very exciting week around these parts.  You see, President Obama & Michelle were staying right down the street during the Democratic National Convention.

Over the past week, there was a lot of this...

On the news this morning I heard that the Obamas would be leaving for the airport at around 10 AM.  As it turns out, I just happened to be near the hotel at around that time and I noticed that people were standing on both sides of the road.  I checked my clock and it was 9:37.  I had to pull over. How many times in a life do you get to see a Presidential Motorcade?  I didn't want to miss it.

There were people everywhere.

The main road was closed off completely and there wasn't a car in sight.

You could see snipers on some of the office rooftops.

You could feel the excitement in the air.

People were walking out of nearby office buildings to watch.

There were police cars everywhere you looked and people too, sporting phones and cameras.

I was SO HAPPY to have my camera on hand. I taped the procession and here it is....

It was really wild. No matter what side of the fence you're on, being that close to the President is exciting.

Who knows how long it will be until we see that kind of excitement around these parts again!!!!