Christmas House Part II "The wearing of the green...And Red".

My treasured trees Via FJ Hollie.

$1.99 scrore from Goodwill!

The pantry.

My collection of Holt Howard.

A gift from Carol Steinway, My favorite new piece.

My Dream home.

A more traditional route, I Love red and green at Christmas.  So familiar and vibrant!  I have also enjoy old Holt Howard Fiqurines for awhile now.  We had the feathered angel as a tree top growing up, so when I went on Ebay to find a replacement I was surprised to see the collections out there!  Some are other brands, but all have that 30's & 40's look I love!  I found alot at the Funky Junk show, the bell is from Ballyhoo Girl & the tall one (that looks like it is out of White Christmas) and the candycane guy are from Market Place Antiques Sdpt.  My Whitmans Chocolate sales display was in a box of Christmas treasue Carol Steinway gave me for Christmas (which will be a blog post in itself at a later date.) and I ADORE it!
I love how much Glenn has enjoyed these displays because he loves red so much, makes it all the more special this year!!  Thanks for visiting! ~Jennifer

Our Home for Christmas part 1 Pretty in pink & Turquoise

I do love pink.  I am a girl who adores all things pretty, and pink is top of that list.  Turquoise has been my most favorite color my entire life, so my kitchen is that.  When I started re-buying my Christmas decorations for some reason I started with my kitchen in mind.  I found a white tree after Christmas last year for $6!  And went from there, some ornaments are gifts, others found at the Funky Junk shows this past year, and some I had found at thrift stores and antique shops around town.  I love having a tree in the kitchen too, after all why not?  Happy Holidays!

Happy 235th Birthday Marine Corps

On a cold winter night back in college, my car went off the road heading up Sunset hill in Spokane.  I was terrified, cars flew by one after another and the snow was coming down fast.  I could not get anyone to stop and I was freezing.  I crawled back in to stay warm.  Then some lights of a big truck shown in my window and two very burly men with kind eyes said "OORAH!  We will get you out in a second, stay put".

And in a few minutes I was up on the road again.  They saw the sticker in my back window, a simple round sticker with a very familiar symbol, Eagle, Globe, and Anchor.  USMC.  They consider themselves a brotherhood, and this is what "Brothers" do. 

I am the proud wife of a United States Marine.  Cpl Nathanial Ryan Wood was active for 4 years but the truth is (and any Marine will tell you this) "Once an Marine, Always a Marine".  It is a title we in this household carry with much pride.
Nathan joined the service out of high school with a lifelong desire to have that title.
I was proud the day (after a 3 month boot camp and many letters later) That I saw him in the crowd of 2/7 Fox Co walk up the field singing the Marine Corp Hymn.  He followed his dream.

The Marines were there 9 years ago the day we were married, to welcome me into the family.  They have kept that word of "family" ever since.  After Nathan suffered a head trauma they checked in.  They helped move our home from St. Maries ID to Standpoint in 2006.  They serve our country every day, whether it is handing out a toy to a child at Christmas (The Marines run Toys for Tots) or being the men on the front line.  First in and last out.  I cherish the fact that I can hang that red and yellow flag in my yard.  I am proud of Nathan.  He is one of the few, one of the Proud.  My Marine

From the Halls of Montezuma
To the Shores of Tripoli;
We fight our country's battles
In the air, on land and sea;
First to fight for right and freedom
And to keep our honor clean;
We are proud to claim the title
of United States Marine.

Our flag's unfurled to every breeze
From dawn to setting sun;
We have fought in ev'ry clime and place
Where we could take a gun;
In the snow of far-off Northern lands
And in sunny tropic scenes;
You will find us always on the job--
The United States Marines.
Here's health to you and to our Corps
Which we are proud to serve
In many a strife we've fought for life
And never lost our nerve;
If the Army and the Navy
Ever look on Heaven's scenes;
They will find the streets are guarded
By United States Marines.

The Farm Chicks Christmas Book

As many of you know, We had our storage Unit broken in to and they stole my Christmas box. My Christmas decorations dating back 4 generations.   With that said, I have still been a little bummed with Christmas coming. Don't get me wrong, as stated in my last post, I am looking forward to the Holidays and starting traditions for Glenn and our little family.  But as far as decorating goes, I have been stumped, uninspired and a little "Bah Humbug".  That was until I received an early gift from Nathan, my Farm Chicks Christmas Book!  I was sooo excited because the cover alone was thrilling, but then I opened it...AMAZING!

Inspired by the pages of this book I found a great use for the old Buddy L!

Chaps and a plethora of Farm Chicks Christmas books!

Celeste, Sally, Nancy, Glenn, Me, Serena and Chris.

I was so thrilled to open the book and feel the excitement of Christmas page after page!  Inspiration filled me as I read the stories, looked at ideas and studied the beautiful photographs.  The women featured in this book have incredible talent, but more than that they have an endless imagination to create such whimsical displays and enchanting homes. 
Today I went to Chaps for a book signing party, to have my book signed and meet up with the amazing women featured in The Farm Chicks Christmas. It was a wonderful treat to see everyone, catch up with old friends and meet others who love the book and decorating as much as I do. 
Then on the way home I found my new beginning pieces towards my new Christmas box, I stopped at Hollies yard sale and found some glittered trees for $3.  I was inspired by the old toy trucks filled with decorations in the book.  Remembering the Buddy L I literally dug up under the old barn last summer, I put ideas in motion!  I think I am on a good start!
Thank you Serena, Teri, Nancy, Sally, Celeste & Chris.  I have to say I am actually "giddy" again about finding new ways to decorate for Christmas, ready to hit the junking trail in search of new traditions and beautiful things.  Love, Jennifer
You can find the book at www.thefarmchicks.com , http://www.amazon.com/ , Costco, Chaps and many other locations. 

1st Halloween as a "Mom".

I have heard for years that having children makes you feel like a kid again.  I have to say I had a very happy childhood, My mom always decorated for every holiday...EVERY holiday!  Grandma too, even if it were just paper cut-outs for the window.  I have always loved them too, counting the days to the next celebration, sending cards adorned with stickers and love. 

But, as the years have gone by I must admit that I have been decorating less, watching the calender less and stopping to see all the window displays and festive homes around town less.  I got caught up in schedules, rushing, shopping at Costco (where there are no windows, much less window displays), living in a hurry. 

On top of that, last year our storage unit was broken into and of all things they stole all my grandmothers decorations and my Christmas box, so I was not too thrilled to "get into" the seasons and Holidays this year.

Then it hit me, I am a mom now, it is up to me to make things fun, to bring festivities to my home.  I have an obligation to Mr. Glenn Kelly and even if he IS only a 5 month old he deserves a Halloween as much as the rest of the kids!  So, I got proactive!
I took him to a pumpkin carving party and stuck him in a pumpkin.
I dressed him in Halloween pj's all October.
I put him in a duck costume and paraded him around town. (and dressed up too, along with Nathan!)
And I Finally found a good use for that old pedal car!

3rd Generation in the old pedal car!

mmmmm pumpkin guts!

Glenns treasure.

Daddy is Juan Valdez, Mommy is Prof. Trelawney

Silly Duck!

7 year old me, won the cake decorating contest at Oden Hall!

Thank you Glenn for bringing me back the magic.

And do you know what happened?  I found her...I found little Jennifer.  You see, as we carved pumpkins I remembered how much I LOVE the smell of pumpkin guts!  As we walked around town I heard the leaves crunch under my feet flashing back when I was trick or treating at 7 in a bride costume and moon boots (in case of snow).  I took a minute to breath in October, and really LOOK at the yellow vibrant trees the way Glenn was seeing them for the first time.  I remembered that old pedal car under the cedar tree and how I believed with all my heart that it took me to enchanted places, and hope someday my son will feel the same way.  I felt...like a kid again, who knew parenthood would make you younger?!  So, now I am packing up Halloween decoration and pulling out a few paper turkeys.  planning a trip to Goodwill today to look for a cornucopia, and booked "Mouse on the Mayflower" on Netflix.  And don't even get me started on Christmas!  The calender is getting filled quick!!  I even have Glenns' Stocking already!  Happy Holidays, from a Mom!  Love, Jennifer

I BROKE Grandmas' Cookie Jar today!

Yes, I did it, I broke the cookie jar.  I am heart broken.  The thing is, this was not just a cookie jar...it was 31 years of memories.  Florence Sulzle was always busy, always baking, and 9 times out of 10 it was cookies.  My love of the change of seasons stems from her, which she passed along to mom, then me, and hopefully I will to Glenn.  With each season the cookie jar was filled with something different.  Currently in the fall it would have been filled with applesauce cookies with a simple white frosting, by December she would be filling it with big round sugar cookies that us kids would decorate in an assortment of green, red and white frosting with as many sprinkles as we could mix up.  What a sight that was every cold winter day until Christmas!  The next moths brought chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin (never really a kids favorite by the way) and by spring it was back to sugar cookies to be decorated for Easter.  By summer the jar was filled with "no-bake" cookies so she didn't have to use the oven and heat up the house.  Then by harvest time we were back to Applesauce cookies again. The jar represented so much more than a simple storage container.  It was opened up for a small hand when a knee was scraped, when a report card had a high grade, when one "just couldn't sleep",  when I wasn't invited to the popular girls slumber party, and when my boyfriend of two years broke up with me...yes even at age 16 that jar had "magic".
  She gave me the jar the year I got married. I had plans of Carrying on the tradition, looking forward to Glenn climbing off the school bus and running in straight to the jar as we discussed all his adventures over a glass of milk.

But alas, I broke it.  But as I kicked my self and cried into my hands I realized that it was not the jar that contained the Magic, it was the cook...she put the love in it, she opened the lid to reward us or soothe a broken heart.  I still have that, I have her and those lessons. If you have ever read "like water for Chocolate" you will know what I mean when I say that we put emotion into our food when we cook.  I was feeling a lot of emotion today.   So, in my upset I put on my apron, my favorite fall music (Practical Magic Soundtrack, Roger Whitaker, and Kenny Rogers) and went to work baking, baking with as much memories as I could muster up, I remembered all the wonderful things about grandma I could.  I baked oatmeal chip cookies, zucchini bread, apple pie, blackberry muffins and applesauce cookies.  And there she was, right next to me, reminding me to stir slower, kneed less, add a bit more vanilla, stop worrying so much, remember to cherish each moment...for who knows it may mean so much to the next generation.
So, next time you see me on the junking trail, you know what I am in search of...But thank goodness I already have what I "need".

A Weekend in Wonderland

I am home now resting from a wonderful weekend at the Mad Hatter Vintage Flea Market!  This was truly one of the most Elegant and Classy shows I have seen!  Gladys and Celia pay such close attention to detail, which sets the stage for an escape from the ordinary...a visit to Wonderland!

I was Happy to see familiar faces, greet old friends and make new ones!  I loved all the energy that surrounded the little Old Five Mile Grange!
The treats for the eye were plenty, the pumpkins, guards and straw mingled with beautiful treasures making everything seem so enchanting indeed!
I was very proud of Sir Glenn too, he greeted Customers, slept in his pink tub and entertained Vendors.  One could not ask for a better 4 month old, mommy really pushed his limits and he showed no signs!
It was a pleasure to be a co-vendor again with my business partner Hollie, we had a lot of fun enjoying someone Else's hard work and appreciating every second of it! 
I came home with treasure too!  I collected some old Apothecary bottles (I love the word apothecary by the way, and have decided to use it more often!), I am going to make a "potions" display on my mantel for Halloween.  I was also able to find a Strawberry Shortcake mug to replace the one I had as a child, I used to have hot chocolate with marshmallows in it in the winter!  And from Hollies booth I found this old "W", Love it!
Glenn Came home with his new T-Shirt by "Oliver & Ava"!

We would like to give a special thank you to all the wonderful vendors and friends who helped Glenn & I get thru the weekend with ease.  We Love each and everyone of you!



"W" for Wood.  and "Wonderful".




Apothecary bottles.




Love the Old label.




Play House Herbal Soap




Sally from "Forget me not" lends a helping hand.




Break time with Glenn.  Hollie and Celeste.




Funky Junk Girls




My Kindred Spirit Dena.  Why am I holding a Cabbage head?




Glenns' new shirt

 A wonderful time was had by all!  This was a great way to begin Fall and sell the last of my things while I spend the winter coming up with new ones and new ideas! 

Thank You Gladys and Celia for a very Memorable event!  It was a pleasure.  xoxoxo Jennifer

A visit with the "Fancy Farm Girl"

Do you ever scan thru blogs and posts under "image search" randomly on the Internet just to feel inspired?  I do, seeing pretty things makes me feel better, makes me feel like cleaning house, decorating, creating! 

One evening earlier this year I was feeling very sick from pregnancy and that was making me blue.  I typed in "fancy. pink. farm." words associated with things I love.  And here pops up "The Fancy Farm Girl".  I was thrilled!  Every Picture I came across made me happy! Tiffany has such a great eye for beauty.  She has a great writing style too that made it easy to relate to. So, I clicked "favorites" and returned time and again to visit.

Recently I got an email asking fro vintage Silverware for the Gals at Creative Connection.  I sent a note stating I had some to sell.  It turned out the person in contact was "The Fancy Farm Girl"!
I happened to be heading over to her neck of the woods that weekend for my Father-in-Laws wedding so I told her I could meet up with her sometime over the weekend.
When I arrived at Tiffany's I was very thrilled to see that she had yard tents set up in her yard for what looked to be a sale.  Sure enough she was selling her inventory to focus on her photography business.  Of course I shopped!  I was thrilled to scoop up old ceiling tiles, glass apothecary bottles, metal baskets and more!  We have no idea how I manage to fit all that I do in our Subaru but honey where there's a will, (and amazing one-of-a-kind-finds) there's a way!

We were about to head out when Tiffany asked if I wanted to see her studio.   Um, YES!  I was soooo excited to see where the magic happens to create such an awesome blog!

Have you ever been reading a decorating Magazine and wanted to crawl inside the pages?  I did that day!

 We entered the newly shingled house thru a very romantic porch.  I loved the old tattered davenport used for photo shoots.
Inside was a treat for the eye.  Every corner had another display of treasure!  I loved all her collections and her style of neutral colors mixed with sparkle!  And yet it was still a "farm house" too!
The most exciting part came when we headed up the stairs.   Wonderful and enchanting.  I cannot put into words what I was feeling as we entered her studio!  Splendid is a good one.  Set with such careful detail, such beauty and style.  I was so busy taking pictures and visiting there is no way I took it all in, but I was over-stimulated with the creative juices flowing in my brain!  I could just imagine how easy it must be to feel inspired in a place like this!  Then there was the display of vintage prom dresses.  Tiffany is proud as peacock of this collection, and she has every right to be!  She even wears them!  She donned on for the last Farm Chicks Show!  I made a goal to fit into one of these eventually too! 

Her "white" Bedroom was a retreat indeed!  A hard working mom and entrepreneur deserves a room like this!

Last but not least was "The Fanciest Chicken Coop" ever!  I was so impressed with this coop, I wanted one for a studio or guest house! She has the luckiest chickens around!
 The farm is indeed a working farm.  Her daughter was bathing a donkey and visited with Nathan and Glenn during my tour.
The gardens were beautiful, the house was amazing and the host was down to earth and very sweet!  I left the farm with a feeling like I did when visiting the website last spring but multiplied by 100!
  Floating back home, it was easier to take the 7 hr drive with my head spinning with inspiration for Hodge Podge Cottage and the yards we will get to next year!

                                                                

                                                                  The Fancy Farm Girl

                                                          
                                    

                                                  A beautiful collection of white pitchers.

                                                 Makes me want to sit down and create!

                                                                    Happy thoughts

                                                   

                                     A Wonderful centerpiece made by the gals of "All that Glitters"!

                          One should love your collections THIS much when they are THIS Beautiful!

                                                                        I Love this.

                                                        Someday I dream to wear one too...

                                                                  A room of dreams!

                                                           Some of Tiffany's Creations!

                                                         We share a love of old bottles!

                                                                   

                                                                           The Coop!

                                                                

                                                         Nathan and Glenn wait patiently

                            I was dressed for a day of "Junking"!  Loved my visit with Tiffany!

                                                                   Shopping too?!?!?

                   Always leave a host gift when you have been treated to such a nice afternoon.

                                                                    A Romantic porch.

                                                             

                                                       Dirty pink farm boots...Love it!

                                                                  Old Blue's Sister!!!!

We have plans for a garden house converted craft room, and new soap shop out of the old family cabin and other out buildings when Glenn is able to be put down for a bit!  Until then I will hold him and keep searching the Internet for inspiration, you never know where the pages might take you!

http://www.thefancyfarmgirl.com/