We got a bit of snow in Warrenton on Christmas Eve. It happened during the day, but I was delighted. Because I love snow. And seeing it on Christmas Eve made me happy.
You gotta take happiness however you can get it, right?
Of course I had to go for a walk and take some pictures.
Red Truck Bakery during the snow event.
I had the dogs with me as I usually do when strolling through town.
Walking behind the bitches.
I’ve been taking lots of pics during my nightly strolls lately. The town just looks so pretty at night.
Here are a few examples.
Art gallery window.
Window at The Empty Nest.
Strolling past the Black Bear Bistro.
Camera phone pics are okay. But on Christmas Eve I decided to venture out without the dogs and with my SLR camera to capture some “real” images.
I used the tripod, too, which is critical for clear night shots that don’t use a flash.
Here are my favorites.
Fauquier County Courthouse in Warrenton
Fauquier County Courthouse in Warrenton
Fauquier County Offices at Warren Green Hotel near Town Hall.
Fauquier County Courthouse in Warrenton
Red Truck Bakery in Warrenton
I am pleased with the results.
Yes, three are of the courthouse, but I just love the way that looks all lit up.
This past weekend, in addition to visiting with my two best buds, I also got to meet a celebrity of sorts. Marian Parsons, aka Miss Mustard Seed, the owner and artist behind Mustard Seed Interiors.
According to the About page on Miss Mustard Seed’s web site,
“Mustard Seed Interiors LLC is a small business that was born out of a love for antiques, decorating on a budget, and giving old pieces of furniture new life. While the primary focus of the retail business is painted and refinished furniture, MSI also carries upholstered pieces, found objects, vintage-inspired painted signs and handmade accessories for the home.“
Marian visited The Empty Nest here in Warrenton on Saturday, so I bought her newly-published book and had her sign it for me.
Y’all remember The Empty Nest, right? I went to — and blogged about — the grand opening back in late July.
I’ve been back quite a few times since then. It is the cutest little shop run by Janet, who is just the nicest lady…
I am so excited for 2013. It’s going to be my creative year. I have lots of painting projects that are patiently waiting in the wings and driving my husband crazy! To get myself jump started, I am going to take a painting class in January.
I am SO excited. Oh wait, I said that already.
Anyway… back to Miss Mustard Seed.
Carol, Tracey, and I got a later start than expected, so I didn’t have much time to hang out with Janet. Her store was pretty busy anyway. And since I’m just around the corner, I can visit whenever I want. I’ve even taken the dogs in to say hello.
I actually bought the book on Friday evening so I could have a chance to look it over before the signing.
I wish I could have stayed longer, but I still had some visiting to do.
I just LOVE looking around Janet’s shop. There’s always something new to see. I even managed to find a snowman.
He was just hanging on his hook whispering, “Take me home. Take me home.”
So I did. 🙂
Now he’s in my tree looking right at home with his many snow brothers and sisters.
If you ever come to Warrenton, I’ll have to take you to visit The Empty Nest in person. Okay?
I don’t have sound on my blog so you’ll just have to pretend you hear a drum roll, okay? Cause big news is about to be shared.
Ready?
Hubby has completed renovation of the master bedroom closet.
Why renovate the closet in a six or so year old house? Because neither of us have ever liked that closet. We’ve sort of gotten used to the fact that you have to walk through it to get to the master bathroom, but we never liked that there was carpet on the floor in there. That just seemed very odd when the bedroom has a hardwood floor and the bathroom is tiled. And the shelves were arranged in the oddest configuration. There was a built-in ironing board, but no electrical outlet. The switch for the light was in the bedroom instead of inside the closet where it should have been.
It was just a stupid little room. So, since that man of mine is not afraid of big projects and actually enjoys wood working, he made built-in cabinets.
I told you about the closet plans back in March. First, there was the making of the sawdust. This isn’t just a little bit of sawdust, folks, because Hubby buys unmilled wood.
You know how a two-by-four only measures 1.5″ x 3.5″? That’s milled wood. Hubby buys wood by the board foot then cuts them down to size. My making of the sawdust post explains that a bit more. And had pictures.
Then there was ripping the old closet guts out or “deconstruction.” There was another phase — installation of the hardwood floor — I somehow did not manage to capture.
Anyway… it is done. And it looks REALLY good.
This is what the closet used to look like…
Closet "Before" Shot
And here are the after pictures…
Standing in the bedroom, looking through the closet and into the bathroom.
It’s hard to take good pics of the closet because it is a rather small room.
Overhead storage with two cabinets on each side.
My side of the closet. Lowest cabinet houses hamper baskets.
Looking from bathroom, through closet and into bedroom.
Hubby's side of the closet.
Same side, different angle.
My side of the room.
Hubby's side holds the linens, too.
Hubby's side of the room.
Hubby's full hamper baskets.
So there you have it. Thoughts?
I need to run and finish doing that laundry. My baskets were both full, too. Since my girlfriends were here for the weekend, the laundry didn’t get done until tonight.
Be sure to let Hubby Mike know how you like his craftsmanship.
Now that the closet is finished, I can finally paint and decorate the bedroom! Woo hoo!!!
I was very fortunate to spend this past weekend with my two best girlfriends. It was awesome.
Sometimes, “best friends” sounds so childish. And exclusionary. Any friend, new or old, is great to have. But these particular friends, Carol and Tracey, have been friends of mine since childhood. So I think calling them my best friends is justified.
That's Tracey beside me and Carol is in the front.
I’m not sure exactly when we all met. It seems like we have known each other since forever.
Really. It’s been about 35 years.
That’s a LONG time.
We’ve all been through and seen each other through so much together. We’re physically distant from each other and don’t get together nearly as often as we would like to, but that bond is and always will be very strong.
We all grew up together in Baltimore. Now, Carol is living in Southern Maryland, Tracey is in Central Pennsylvania, and I am in Virginia.
The distance isn’t insurmountable, but we all have pretty busy lives. Which is why we see so little of each other. But when we do get together, it’s always good.
Things are rarely rosy for all of us simultaneously. We all have our different struggles. So it’s not always sunshine and laughter. But even when times are bad, getting together with these two somehow makes things better.
I don’t want to get too mushy here. I just have to say I am really, REALLY glad we were all able to spend time together this holiday season.
I love you girls more than I think you know.
Here are some more shots from our weekend…
I finally got to show them my new town.
Tracey, like I told you, I really do shoot this church a lot. Especially when there’s a blue sky in the background.
I took that one just for you. 🙂
At the Marshall Tag Sale.
More snowmen for the collection.
The snowmen were perfect for the wall in my foyer.
Tracey doing her Vanna White impersonation.
Carol and Tracey with some treasures from Robin's Nest Antiques in Marshall, VA.
Carol LOVES old, red trucks.
Santa is driving that truck!
I am slowly getting to know some folks here in my new town. Working from home can sometimes be quite limiting. But I am going to make a concerted effort to change some things in 2013.
I’m going to get out of the house more, for one. It’s hard to make local friends when you never, or at least rarely, leave the house!
I am going to make time for my various DIY projects, too. Furniture painting. House decorating. Sewing.
I need to set aside more time for riding, too. And blogging. Although, to be honest, my blogging habits may have to change, too.
Anyway… it’s late. It has been a long, but wonderfully rejuvenating weekend.
Before leaving you with this one last image, I just have to say, have a happy week!
Thanksgiving 2012 has come and gone. Our house, which was a flurry of activity for several days, is once again quiet.
That’s good and bad. Good because Hubby and I aren’t used to that much excitement. Bad because it was fun having the parents, kids, and grand kids around.
For me, the holiday was bittersweet. It was our first Thanksgiving without Mom. And Shannon, who lives in San Diego, wasn’t able to come. Both were sorely missed. Lucky for me, I didn’t have time to dwell upon those absences. Instead, we enjoyed several days of frenetic activity and togetherness (i,e., chaos!).
I forced everyone to pose for a group photo on Friday afternoon before anyone could leave. Shown in the picture are:
Back Row, L-R: TJ (son-in-law), Mike (husband), and Eric (son)
Middle Row, L-R: Dad (father), Amy (daughter), Kathy (me), Kelsey (soon to be daughter-in-law), and Brianna (granddaughter)
Front, L-R: Gaige (grandson), Joey (grandson), and Mom (mother-in-law)
No one had the patience to wait while I tried to get the dogs to sit with us. But they were there, too. So was Dad’s cat, Sylvia, pictured below.
Sylvia
Just about everyone had a hand in dinner preparation, except for the animals. Gaige and Joey didn’t help with meal prep, but TJ and the Hubby did a great job keeping them busy.
Below are some images captured on Thanksgiving day. I wasn’t the only photographer. Brianna took some pics and so did Hubby.
Hubby and Joey
Watching the Parade
Brianna Kneading the Dough for Dinner Rolls
Eric, who is attending culinary school, was in charge of making the rolls. He enlisted Brianna’s help and essentially just supervised while she did all the work. Brianna loves helping in the kitchen, but I had too much going on for that. Eric took it upon himself to get Brianna involved. He did a fabulous job teaching and she did just as well listening.
Have a look at the finished product…
Dinner Rolls
Me Making Lasagne
Pre-dinner Snacks
Gaige and Joey
Hubby and the Boys in the Workshop
Mike was going to let all of the kids do a project in the workshop, but Brianna decided she’d rather help in the kitchen.
I can’t show you what they made because it’s a secret gift for Mom and Dad. But here’s a shot Hubby captured of the boys working.
Gaige and Joey in the Workshop
Prepping the Rolls
Eric & Kelsey
Pop (my Dad) and Eric Peeling Potatoes
Gaige and TJ Napping
Kelsey, Eric and Brianna Playing Cards
My brain was too fried for a card game. I enjoy cooking and don’t mind all of the work. But cooking a big meal like that requires a lot of thought. And I have a very hard time concentrating with all of the hubbub in the house. You know, kids playing, cheering during football games, dogs barking, kids screeching from being tickled, multiple conversations, etc. I try not to ignore people, but have a hard time coordinating everything that needs to be done and participating in lengthy chats. Hopefully I didn’t offend anyone!
Joey and K
Hubby actually captured that shot of Joey with K on his lap on Friday morning while I was still in bed.
And that’s it for the Thanksgiving shots.
I hope your day was as full of fun and love as ours was!
