Christmas in the Un-Farmhouse!!!

 I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas!!

We almost had an Un-Christmas!!:)  With all the construction going on I was hesitant to bring out the decorations and feather trees, since they are antiques and I didn't want them to get dusty!  There STILL seems to be construction dust everywhere!  So the decorating was a little sparse.  I did put some lights on the porch outside which I rarely do because I like the simple "lights in the windows and wreaths"! 

 Every year around Thanksgiving we take the screens off the windows and just after Thanksgiving up go the wreaths!  THIS year is has not been cold enough to take the screens off, since I have had the windows open ALOT!!! we have left them on, so NO wreaths!  Even now I have the window open!!! JAN6th  where is the snow?  CRAZY!!!   It has been nice to be able to open the windows but I always hope for a WHITE Christmas!

SO our Holiday Season started out just fine with everyone home for Thanksgiving!  I made an arrangement for the front door in one of my favorite baskets.  I usually have a large square wreath to which I add fresh leaves and fall things.  I have been bored with the usual decorations, so I decided to use my basket!! Well it lasted about 2 hours or so!!!!!  

Poor little basket!

THANK YOU Mr Squirrel:)

THIS is what I found on the door not so long after I made it!!  I should have thought about the corn! I had to just laugh! and wish the squirrels Happy Thanksgiving!!!  I almost always put corn on the square wreath and they never bothered it at all!! Oh well live and learn:) Hope I remember that next year :)

 At least the crafty squirrels could not get to the centerpiece inside!! :)

I decided to go back to my original plans for Christmas (back to the 1900's when I decorated my first apt)!  I was always going to use fresh greens and fruit for the whole season!   Somewhere along the way the "store bought" things began to show up THEN the antiques!  When the children were little I added some new things to the greens.   As they grew older I added the antiques.  The antiques have taken over! I still always use lots of fresh greens but I can't resist the antiques!

The Nutcracker guard the pineapples!  :)

Here are some of the greens on the mantle, it doesn't show up that well, but we have everything on there including nandina leaves.  I have not used the nandina before but I really like it! It is so light and airy!

The outside got some fresh greens also!

A note about using fresh greens....  A few years ago I was lucky enough to be asked to help decorate a room in the historic home of James Madison,  Montpielier.  We used loads of greens from the property and they told us to spray them with "Mop&Glo" wax.  It only works with Mop&Glo, but it preserves the greens for a really long time.  I forgot about that and have not used it in awhile,  but I am going to make a note to try it next year!!

 

 

A few of my favorite ornaments for the tree!

Nutcrackers peeking out of the new office windows!

Even with all of the construction and turmoil our holiday was great, just not long 

enough!!

I have lots of pictures to share of the office so I will post them all at once:)  I am now going to take down the tree!  I always hate taking it down because it doesn't seem dried yet:)  AND I really didn't get the chance to look at it much this year!  OK maybe I will wait until tomorrow!  As Miss Scarlett said "Tomorra is anothea day"!