Snowman Sparkles

I received this stacking snowman teapot as a gift one year.
  

  

I added a little vintage sparkle to his little cap so he would shine for our little tea party.
  

The bottom tier of him is the actual teapot and is decorated with several Christmas cookies.
   

He is perfect for the Holiday Season;
   

And he fits right in with my vintage pink ornaments.
    

My sweetie bought this huge tin of sugar cookies from Denmark for the holiday…I love the way the sugar sparkles.
   

The middle of the stack is an adorable little creamer with a peppermint scarf.
   

 

One of my favorite little tunes this time of year is “Christmas Is Coming”.    When my son was young, we use to sing this song in the car.
   

 

 (click to enlarge)

I  took one of these adorable cookie cards and added the words of this little tune to it. 




Click on Cindy's button to visit "Show and Tell Friday":

Christmas Trees in Heaven

"Did you see any angels?"

 
"Yes, beautiful snow-white angels;

and I saw long tables spreading far away, farther that I could see, laden with Christmas trees--

--some a blaze of stars, others less brilliant; they were lighted with beautiful bright tiny stars;

angels floated in and out among them, here and there adding a star to a tree, sometimes extinguishing one: when this occurred, the angel next to it became sad and wept. 


A smiling angel said to me, pointing to a radiant tree, 'That is yours.' 'But, dear angel,' I asked, 'why are some trees dark without any stars, and some less brilliant than mine?" 



The angel answered, 'Every child on earth has a Christmas tree in Heaven, watched by his angel guardian;



whenever the child is good and obedient to his parents and teachers, whenever he is kind to the poor, and whenever he raises his heart in prayer to God, stars are added, giving more lustre;



but if he is idle, disobedient, or uncharitable, a star is extinguished, and then the angel at the dark tree is sad, and weeps his sorrow for the child who is not preparing for Heaven.'



Oh, Edmund, I do feel happy to have a Christmas tree ready in Heaven.

(This story was taken from ‘Three Christmas Trees, 1884)

Today,  I am so happy to be linking up with Charlotte and Ginger for Spiritual Sundays:  

Sweet St. Nick

A gentle man with a generous heart,



Always thinking of others right from the start.




Not wanting others to know his plan,




He traveled at night all over the land.




He left his treasure in shoes and socks at night,




People discovering their gifts with the morning light.




St. Nickolas was a man of God, indeed,




Sharing his wealth with all those in need.

Inside the Historical Holiday Homes

Here are a few of my favorite things that caught my eye during the Historical Home Tour on Sunday. 

(Now you must imagine the scent of cinnamon and vanilla in the air as you stroll through these pictures.)

 (Just click any picture to enlarge)

Although I do not have one, I adore hanging pot racks.  These copper pots had me in heaven.

 

 

In the picture below giant copper cookie cutters surrounded the doorway.  How cool is that?  (These were in the same kitchen as the pot racks.)

 

 

The dining room below had a wonderful old fashion traditional look.

 

 

Little touches, like the garland above the windows were beautiful.

 

 

I was drawn to all the wonderful antique furniture as well as the holiday sparkles.

 

 

I enjoyed the color combination here of  silver and “shades of green”.

 

 

Of course I could not pass up getting a  picture of this beautiful silver tea set.

 

This master bathroom was quite the surprise in a historical home restored from the 1920’s.

 

 

It was absolutely breathtaking. 

 

 

Just take a look at this copper walk-in shower…

 

It was so fun to see how others decorated their homes for the holidays.

Holiday Tour of Historical Homes

Sunday my mother and I toured some of the historical homes here in Phoenix that were decorated for the holidays.

This house was so sweet.




The owners even added a whimsical sign in their front yard for trespassers to stay away.




The houses we visited were restored from the 1920’s and 1930’s.
 



These homes had so much charm to them.
 



Each home had it’s own personality. (Which is rare here in Phoenix)
  



Check out this whimsical chimney topper of a cat chasing a mouse.
  



It was if we stepped back into a simpler time;
 



Where neighbors strolled the sidewalks on Sunday afternoon,
 



or caught the Trolly.
  



There were even vendors set up in the street selling antiques or handmade items.
 



I was drawn to the vintage sparkles. (No surprise there)

I will be posting more pictures I took so check back to see the pictures I took of the inside of these historical homes decorated for the Christmas Season.  You will not want to miss it.

Sugar Plum ~ FREE Holiday Graphic

I wanted to design something whimsical, in the holiday spirit, and covered in (of course) sugar.

Whala!  My latest animated design for you.

My “Sugarplum Martini”.

Cheers!

If you would like to place this graphic into your side bar do the following:

 1. Click on "Design" on your own Blog Dashboard.

  2. Now click on "Add a Gadget" located on the sidebar.

  3.  Choose "Picture".

  4.  Fill out the form by:

     a.    Fill in your own "Title"

     b.    Check the box "Shrink to fit"

     c.     Check the circle "From the Web" and enter this text into the white box next to it    http://i.imgur.com/nlOKC.gif

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