One of These Things is Not Like the Other

All good things must come to an end, and this weekend marked the official stripping of the Christmas decorations from my house.  I'm sure I'm at least 2-3 weeks behind most people, but I had to wait until at least after New Year's, then threw in another week for good measure :)  Plus I think the Christmas tree really fills in that corner of the living room nicely, so I wasn't too eager to get rid of it.

Since we got married, my husband and I buy a new penguin ornament each year as part of a little tradition we started.  Penguins mate for life, so we thought it was cute and fitting to add to the tree with a new little "mascot" every Christmas.  I showed our collection here last year, and I was eager to start the search for our official 2011 ornament.  I had to chuckle as I was pulling all of the ornaments off the tree this weekend--I'd had some trouble finding a penguin this season, but my husband had come home from Christmas shopping one day, proud to show off his "find" for the tree.  Can you tell which one he picked?

Seriously.  One of these things is definitely not like the others.  At first I didn't say anything because I was so impressed that he took the time to search this little guy out, and then stood in line for fifteen minutes to pay for it.  Then, I gently suggested that maybe it didn't quite 'go' with the rest of the tree.  He agreed, and said I could do whatever with it, he was just trying to help out.  If you've seen my Christmas tree, you'll notice that there's no way this chubby creature fits with the rest of the theme, but over the course of the season, he kind of grew on me.  So I decided that this would indeed be our 2011 mascot, and in future years I could just hide him in the branches somewhere :).  Of course after the fact, I did manage to get my hands on two penguins, one with a silver tummy, and a frosted one that my mom gave me, both much more suited to my decor.  Oh well--I think a little bit of humor this year adds nicely to our tradition!

With all the Christmas boxes now neatly packed and tucked away for next year, I'm looking forward to a few giggles when I crack open the decorations next year.  The living room does look so empty though......what to put in that now empty corner where the tree was......?

A Resolution to My New Year's Resolutions

Every time the New Year comes around, I go over my mental list of the things I'd like to accomplish and ways I'd like to better myself as a person.  And every year when it seems like I'm not "on track" for accomplishing those things, I beat myself up and play the comparison game with others, falling into the thinking that I'm somehow not good enough, organized enough, or smart enough to complete my "list".  So this year, while I am resolving to make some improvements, I'm also (more importantly) resolving to be easier on myself, accept my limitations and take pride in the things I do accomplish.

I think its so easy to get to a place where we decide that since we can't do it all, we can't do anything.  With a world of beautiful blogs written by talented bloggers, we see projects, homes and interiors that look polished and professional, and make the people that live in these spaces look like their homes are picture perfect all the time.

Pure Style Home

Magazines and print media give us gorgeous spaces, presenting a lifestyle that we dream about living in.

images via Canadian House & Home Magazine

Pinterest, a grand distraction full of great ideas, allows us to create boards full of projects, recipes and inspiration.........it would take me years to complete all of the things I've pinned!  Although I love this idea for a clock--its totally me!

Pinterest

Anyways, my point is that we (me) beat ourselves up over how much it looks like others are able to accomplish without realizing that the pretty pictures only tell half the story.  In reality (and I hope other bloggers can attest to this), for every beautifully photographed room, there's a not-so-pretty pile of stuff down the hall, or in the corner the picture doesn't show. For example, at the same time my new kitchen looked like this:

The guest bedroom on the other side of the wall looked like this:

And I won't even get started on all of the other "hoards" I have in various rooms of my house...... :)

Those gorgeous rooms we see in magazines and designer websites don't tell the whole story either.  It takes a team of talented designers, fabricators, installers, photographers, stylists and editors to create the lifestyles those spaces impart, and they certainly didn't come together overnight.

Julie Charbonneau via Canadian House & Home

So this year, I'm determined to be ambitious, but also realistic.  I'm aiming to stay grounded by keeping things in perspective, applauding my accomplishments and not beating myself up for the inevitable failures.  Overall, I'm looking forward to good things, great changes and challenges, and a year full of success.

All the best for a wonderful 2012!

Easy (and Impressive!) Last Minute Goodies

I found this recipe on this blog, and as soon as I read it had to give it a try.  Easy as can be, and makes a yummy and delicious treat to give away to friends and neighbors, or to have out as munchies for a party.

I personalized the recipe a bit, and it turned out great--here's my version:

Peppermint Cookies and Cream Popcorn (aka Reindeer Food)
2 bags microwave popcorn, popped
2 bags red & green M & M's - 1 mint flavored and 1 dark chocolate flavored
1 pack Oreo cookies, crushed
1 large (20 oz.) bag white chocolate chips
2 tsp. peppermint extract

1  Place popcorn in large bowl (I use a turkey roaster because its huge and works well); pour crushed Oreos over and stir together.

2  Melt 3/4 of the package of white chocolate, adding 1 1/2 teaspoons of the peppermint extract.  I used a double boiler method to melt the chocolate.

3  Pour chocolate over the mixture and stir.  Oreos will absorb some of the chocolate and won't be fully coated.

4  Melt remaining chocolate with 1/2 teaspoon of extract.  Pour over mixture and stir to coat.

5  Before chocolate is fully hardened, add M & M's and toss until they are incorporated and stuck to the mixture.

6  Pour onto wax paper, and once hardened break into pieces.  Enjoy!

Maybe you can tell by the mess in  my kitchen and the amount of light in the photos that I was frantically doing this late at night, the day before I needed giveaway treats for friends.  I'm happy to say that this recipe came together in a half hour, tastes great and made a ton!  I'm definitely putting this in my "must use" recipe pile for future years.

After it was all hardened I poured the mix into these cute little take out boxes.  Done and done. :)  Easy enough to make another batch if I should need some for later in the holiday season.

Hope you have a very Happy New Year's this weekend, and cheers to 2012!

Featured on Project Nursery!

A big huge thanks to Cristin of Simplified Bee for her article on Project Nursery which features Tate's Nursery.  What a great holiday gift for me--I feel so honored!  And even though Tate doesn't realize it, he's a pretty lucky little guy to be able to spend all sorts of time in that room.  Here's a recent picture of him (2 months already!), chillin' in his big comfy chair.

Hope you've all had a great week of celebration with friends and family.....enjoy the weekend and Happy New Year!

Christmas at CottageModern

With a new baby in the house, by necessity my Christmas decorating was slightly minimized.  This was a bit painful, as I love to deck the house out for the holidays!  That said, I told myself that it might be the last year for a long time that I get to have things the way I want them :), so I made a point to get out all of my fancy breakables and load the tree down with sparkle and shine!

We went to pick out the tree this year, and I had in mind something a bit scraggly with lots of random branches sticking out everywhere.  I wanted it to be "not so perfect", and although my husband thought I was crazy, within minutes I spotted what I was after.  Too bad it was 12' tall.  Even though we have standard 8' ceilings, I wasn't going to let that stop me, and had one of of the workers do some minor "remodeling" to get it down to about 7 1/2 feet.  I love how it turned out, and how it looks all decked out in turquoise and green!

I'm not allowed to buy any more tree ornaments.  This is what I'm telling myself since its become clear that I have more than I can even use.  My problem is after-Christmas sales.  Every ornament on my tree was either a gift, or purchased at 70 - 90% off at the end of the season.  Its become evident that I'm unable to control myself when things are that deeply discounted, but we'll see what happens this year :)

I felt like I needed to change my mantle up a little bit for the season.  Last year, I did decorated it like this, and I'm ashamed to say that it stayed like this for the entire year (except for the hanging balls and ribbon):

I like the symmetry of the new mantle, and the lanterns and candles add a nice ambiance when lit.

I love this winter white owl, and am delighted to finally have this hearth tiled.  Last year, it was unfinished with exposed concrete, and this year my dad finished it out for me in this nice marble subway. He did a great job, and its nice to have another project checked off the list.

I did have a few more touches of Christmas around this house, including this wreath I made a few years ago, but mostly I focused my efforts where I was able--because I only have short windows of time these days, it took me a week to get that tree decorated!  Thanks for stopping by for this little Christmas tour!