Author:Lori
Celebrate

Centennial Celebration!

September 16
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So the day finally came…the centennial celebration of our home!  It was so much fun planning this event and I was also lucky to have family here to enjoy the evening…and help!  And though I love to throw a party, this evening was really about celebrating the history of our home, family, and friendships!  The weather seemed to have some difficulty making up its mind right up to the hour of the party…but it ultimately turned out to be a lovely evening to be outdoors with the brief 7 pm shower leaving us with a much cooler, comfortable night!  So let me get right to it today and share the celebration of this place we call home…

100 years…and counting!

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Garden

The Power of the Flower

September 12
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When my family arrived last Friday to help us celebrate the centennial of our home, my parents brought with them bucket loads of cut flowers from their gardens!  Now I knew my mom was going to cut some of her blooms so that I would have some fresh flowers for the party…but I didn’t expect how many actually showed up!  Several weeks ago I shared my mom’s beautiful gardens…I guess I should have known that there would be plenty pretty posies for cutting!  I LOVE using flowers whenever I can…they just seem to make any space look lively and fresh and can make any event look grand!  It doesn’t really matter whether it’s a full blown celebration or just a casual dinner at home, a bouquet of flowers can do wonders!  I definitely planned on using several bouquets for our gathering, but was AMAZED at what I was actually able to work with…thanks to my mom & dad!  So before I share ALL the centennial fun, I’d like to show you how we created some sweet and simple bouquets that did more than just look pretty!

beautiful & bountiful blooms…

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Celebrate

Preparing…

September 9
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The celebration for our home’s centennial is just a day away!  I’ve been having so much fun with the preparations for this party…I LOVE vintage and this gathering will definitely have an old fashioned flair!  Since I don’t have girls, I rarely can add dainty touches to our celebrations unless it’s just for me and my girlfriends!  But this time it’s all about the era so I can have some fun with my color choices and floral patterns and not worry a bit if it’s too “girly”!  So today I’ve planned to complete the majority of my decorating before my family arrives this afternoon!  Even though I will then have plenty of helping hands, it also frees us up a bit to visit and just enjoy the occasion!  I sing the praises of planning ahead…it really makes it much easier to be stress free on the day of an event, big or small!  AND we can’t control mother nature so I also recommend having an “indoor” backup plan if the party is slotted for outside!  It looks like a backup might be needed this weekend so I’m going with plan B for my food setup…which is actually my favorite of the two!  So even if it’s not raining, I think I’m sticking with this one…and we won’t have to worry about the bees and flies bombarding the goodies!  Since I can set things up in advance inside, I’ll share a peek at my party preparations…

centennial celebration in the works…

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Decorate

Fridge Frenzy!

September 7
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I’ve been on an organizing kick…I’ve mentioned it on Instagram a time or two!  But I’ve been taking it slow…trying to tackle small spaces at a time in hopes to get it as right as possible, stay within a budget, and not destroy my mental health trying to get it ALL done at once!  And you know what?  By keeping each project rather small, it has been amazingly satisfying!  It allows me to actually complete the task at hand and not get overwhelmed.  Needles to say, there’s many, many more small areas to organize but for me, this is definitely the way to do it!  So not long ago I shared a photograph on Instagram of a spectacularly organized refrigerator…and I happen to own the very same model.  Mine, however, looked nothing like the one in the photograph…but not for long!  I love getting such great organizing inspiration…and if this time it keeps me from having to totally dig through my fridge only to find something that’s sprouted roots and is ready to walk away…I’m game!  So my fridge may not be organized EXACTLY like the one I saw…but it IS a whole heck of a lot better!  Let me share some of the fun finds that I used to free up my fridge from its normal frenzy!

organizing makes room for much more…

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Uncategorized

Labor Day Wishes!

September 5
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I hope everyone is enjoying this Labor Day weekend in whatever way is wonderful to you!  We spent many of the days putting the word “labor” to good use around this old house of ours!  But the weather cooperated and we had relaxing evenings around the fire, squeezed in a family movie night, and of course, fired up the grill for dinners on the patio…a wonderful way to unofficially end the summer!  Best wishes for the rest of your long weekend to be filled with joy!

Have a great holiday everyone!

Decorate

The Water Closet

August 31
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We’ve always got a project or two going on around here.  Sometimes it seems like they never end…one leading right into another in an endless cycle!  But that’s what we signed up for when we bought this old house, and for the most part, we really enjoy the process and of course, the outcome!  Even though we hardly ever splurge big on our renovations and spend much of the project loosing plenty of blood, sweat, and tears, we still find satisfaction getting our hands dirty doing as much as we possibly can ourselves!  We’ve tackled almost every floor and room of this house…but a couple still remain partially unchanged since we moved in 13 years ago.  So not only do we still have projects on the list, the maintenance cycle keeps us busy in between…and there’s usually an unexpected problem popping up here and there!  Oh, the joys of an old home!  And sometimes a tiny project can last years…making small changes along the way, one extra-bit-of-spending-money at a time!  Such is the case with our first floor powder room.  It was the least unfortunate looking of all the rooms when we moved in, so it remained the same while we attempted to alter the ones we really couldn’t stand!  We finally got around to stripping the wallpaper and changing the faucet but that’s where it ends…until now.  And even though it still isn’t finished, I’m going to share how it’s going so far…and will follow up with the final result!  I guess if I always waited until a project was TOTALLY completed, I’d never share anything!  See how we’ve started…

time for change…

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Celebrate

Party Prep…

August 29
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I’m getting ready for an event coming up next month…one I’ve been thinking about for a LONG time!  Our house was built 100 years ago and I’ve been toying with the idea of a little celebration for about three years now…does that seem a little obsessive?  It’s just that my husband and I love living in old homes…there’s just something so charming to us about a home’s past and the wonder of who lived within its walls!  Even though it also means plenty of updating, repairing, repairing…did I say repairing?  There’s a constant flow of projects, big and small…some completed and some still on the “to-do” list.  But through it all, we’ve always chosen to live in old homes…and this current one is the oldest yet!  100 years…I think it’s a reason to celebrate so we will!  And since I’ve been thinking about it for so long, I’ve been able to prepare a little in advance which I find really helpful!  Over the years of entertaining I’ve learned that no gathering is totally perfect…it might rain or snow, a project might not be completed, an unexpected household disaster may take place hours before the guests arrive–but that’s life!  So even though I’m having plenty of fun dreaming about the decorations and the simple food I’ll prepare…I’m not going to sweat the stuff I can’t control!  So no matter what events transpire, whether my house is festively decorated or not, I’ll be able to fully enjoy my family and friends in celebrating this place we call home!  Today I’d like to share a peek at my party preparations, without giving anything away just yet…

the excitement of a plan…

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Celebrate

Back to School Treat!

August 24
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Yesterday was our first day back to school!  Not entirely sure if I’m happy or sad about this…I think I’m mostly happy since life with a scheduled routine is usually better for ALL members of my family (although the boys may disagree!).  I have to admit I’m also a little sad since my oldest is a senior this year…how did that happen!?  But since I can’t figure out how to stop time, I may as well make it as merry as possible!  So for the very first after school snack of the year I decided to “tweak” the “after school” part and make it an “after dinner” treat for the boys and a few friends!  And since it still feels like late summer should, I decided that an ice cream sundae bar would be a nice way to celebrate the start of a new school year AND the memories of a wonderful summer!  So a simple setup on the patio was all that was needed on a gorgeous evening…

school night celebration…

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Decorate

Storage Style

August 22
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Not too long ago one of my friends tried to convince me to blog about my kitchen hutch.  I really hesitated since in my opinion, there’s nothing really special about it!  I’ve shared it before when it was all dressed for the holidays, but I never thought of its every day appearance as being all that exciting.   Not that I don’t love it, but it humbly holds a hodgepodge of serving pieces and party supplies, snacks and baking utensils…just about anything really!  I’ve always liked to organize and store my supplies in a way that I don’t have to go digging when I need them…but that means that they need to be out in the open.  And even though it can look cluttered, having these things at my fingertips is much less stressful for me and visually helps me remember what I’ve got on hand so I don’t unnecessarily purchase something I don’t really need!  So I have this odd, little nook in my kitchen that really isn’t big enough for an eating area or much else for that matter!  Our side door is also located there which makes it almost impossible for that space to be functional!  Without having custom cabinetry built my only option was to find something that would actually fit…which ended up being an old hutch that had been in my son’s room displaying outgrown Lego creations & stuffed animals!  My nook now had a purpose…a place to store all those extra kitchen items that I previously didn’t have room for!  I love this hutch for hiding extra linens and grocery items in the deep drawers and the open shelving can show off all the cute stuff…even if it is utilitarian!  I can’t take any decorative credit for its appearance…the things I store here are nice looking all on their own!  I just display my prettiest serving pieces, and use glass containers to hold colorful baking cups, straws, and other fun party products!  But at the urging of my friend, I decided to go ahead and share how I organize in this tiny space…it’s simple, it’s fun, it’s useful, and I hope you can find some inspiration for your home!

time to organize…

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Savor, Travel

Eat a Little or Eat A Lot…at Eataly!

August 19
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Good Friday morning!  I decided to sneak in a Friday post this week because we had SO many wonderful experiences during our long weekend in New York City I just had to end the week with another!  And of all the experiences, I have to admit some of the best moments were spending time with my family around the tables of eateries or even indulging right on the curbside!  We all love to treat ourselves to good food so we were sure to stop at as many places as we possibly could for multiple tastes!  I even got smart this time and ordered the smallest portions that I could so I could sample the mouthwatering offerings and still keep up with my boys who can afford to eat pretty much non-stop!  So we proceeded to make many pit-stops at food carts, sweet shops, and restaurants and enjoyed every morsel of each and every one!  We didn’t really want to keep too many schedules so we only ate at one restaurant that required reservations…the rest were more spur of the moment and casual…but no less impressive!  And my favorite eatery of the weekend was filled with such wonder that we were all awestruck by what was within the walls!  If you’ve ever eaten at an Eataly restaurant you know what I mean when I say it’s a unique experience!  Whether you eat rooftop or casually amidst market shoppers mingling through isles that separate multiple dining options…it’s definitely a treat!  And those shopping isles are brimming over with varieties of pasta, produce, breads, deli meats & cheeses, seafood counters, cookbooks, and kitchen accessories…the list goes on and on!  Even better?  You can grab a glass of wine for some sipping and shopping while you wait for your table!  And for those in the family who are too young to visit the bar…they won’t miss out on any pre-meal fun with plenty of sweet options available…like nutella crepes!  We WERE on vacation, which i think is a perfect opportunity to eat dessert first!  So if you’re looking for a quiet, private table for intimate dinner conversation–this place might not be it!  But for lively fun paired with fabulous food…this is the place to be!

a little taste of Eataly…

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