Breathe...

Yesterday, out there in blogland - I discovered a recipe for cheesy chicken noodle soup. It's cold and icy here, school has been out all week, there is still a LOT of snow on the ground, and this morning the temperature was 9 defees F. So chicken noodle soup sounded like a wonderful idea. Well, it was okay. Needs work for my crew to love it, starting with the phrase "leave out the cheese." I'll be working on this recipe some more.

Any way --- its cold -- we have been cooped up for days - even the dog is miserable with cabin fever.

So a little redecorating is being planned.

My word for the year is ABUNDANCE. I'll be pondering on it for the year. MaryAnn and I chose BEAUTY for January and that has been a wonderful thing.

Then he said to them "Watch out! Be on guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an ABUNDANCE of possesions." Luke 12:15

So that my friends is where pondering has found me. I have stuff. Lot's and lot's of stuff. Stuff I do not needs. Stuff that is weighing me down. I have stuff that others thought would bring a smile to my face as they gifted me with it. Stuff that clutters my attic, my limited storage through out the house, my studio, my mind.
STUFF.

Just look......
I love my day to day mantle - have for years. Family photo, artwork I made, candles. Really pretty stuff. Sometimes I clutter surfaces with things that could be hung, because I have stuff hanging that needs to be moved.

My Christmas mantle made me very very happy this year. It wasn't over the top. There wasn't a ton of things. No formality at all. Simple and heartfelt.

I packed all that away and have had an empty mantle there for several days.

Last night College Girl came in. She had a dollar store frame, and a pastel drawing she had done. She asked me to help her frame the drawing. I made me happy, reminded me that warmth and sunshine will return. SO my early winter mantel is now done. Some would say this should be a summer mantel, but I'm loving this RIGHT NOW.

Take a look.

Yes, I am very proud to display her artwork in my house.

A few colored glass bottles - a chalk drawing of the beach - a shell.. MMMMMMM.

The tall green bottle was my mom and dads, it has been around as long as I can remember. The shell I gathered myself. The blue bottle is a tequila bottle I kept just because I love it. (think I'll hang a sand dollar on that one) and the red one was a Christmas gift from College Girl.

So I cleared an ABUNDANCE of stuff off there and gave this arrangement an ABUNDANCE of breathing room.

I'm thinking this is BEAUTIFUL to look at.

Happy Happy girl.

What cha think?

I'm planning a room redo (actually several) using the Pittsburg paints 411 series

with colors like silvery moon, veil of dusk, french grey linen, and photo grey. They are all a grey green and I am so very excited about it all coordinating through the house. www.voiceofcolor.com a slightly off white trim (maybe a pure white -TBD)

Have a wonderful day - I am looking forward to a wonderful warmer weekend.