christmas table

We had spent christmas the week before with our daughters because this year they were going to be spending their christmas with their partners families so we had a very small gathering at our table on christmas day.........just four of us and it felt strange not having the rest of the family there......



I want to thank each and every one of you who take the time to keep a blog because i know what goes into it and all those bloggers who have inspired me to look at life differently and to see the beauty in everything......i have always been a detail person and I have loved how you have all created such wonderful visions for all of us who visit to admire and we learn and grow from those beautiful images and words......


When my girls were very little i always decorated the whole of my house having been inspired by the stories i had read of Tasha Tudor who used to float birthday cakes down the stream to the banks where her children were celebrating their birthdays and how she had such a thing as a small post box where her children could post fairy notes and she used to be the person in secret who answered it....she created small catalogues of clothes that the children could order from for their favourite toy and at night when they were asleep she would make the clothes and post them in their boxes.....i thought what wonderful childhood memories her children would have and wanted to created some kind of magic for my children......so at christmas i always decorated the whole house and each daughter had a special tree in their room along with ornaments that were theirs......tables were always set with detail and interesting arrangements........one year we set the tables up outside under our huge oak tree complete with hanging ornaments, fairy lights and even a real christmas tree with presents underneath and of course christmas music........memories are made and last a lifetime and this is what christmas to me is all about creating a bit of magic!!!

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keeping Christmas simple

It has been interesting to note that alot of you are keeping this christmas decorating to something simple and sometimes less is more......i wonder if its because life at this time of year gets so busy that we want some control and peace in our own homes and this simplicity at this overwhelming time of year is what does it for us..



What are the values regarding the christmas season.......Peace, sharing, giving, relaxation, parties, beautiful gifts given and received and a warm and welcoming home.......




Christmas is the season of ........ some of us will be marking the birth of Jesus, some will be giving thanks for the true gifts of Christmas as beautifully told in the Christmas Story.......



Unconditional love, selflessness, trust, faith, forgiveness, wholeness, second chances, comfort, joy, peace, reassurance, rejoicing, generosity, compassion, charity, wonder, acceptance and courage.
Lets experience Christmas not as a deadline but as a season , one of friendship, family, gratitude and giving, reflecting and learning, celebrating and rejoicing, slowing down and mostly LOVE.......

Wherever you are in the world I wish you a season of surprises that will delight you, laughter that is shared, happiness that grows and memories to keep..........
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM NEW ZEALAND.........

Cabbages and Roses Giveaway

If you don't know about these fabrics then you are truly missing out on something beautiful and timeless......there is an amazing giveaway of these fabrics on the following four blogs.....please check it out and take time to view these blogs as they are very inspiration and worth a stop by......

http://mysweetsavannah.blogspot.com

www.dreamywhites.blogspot.com

http://frenchlarkshpur.blogspot.com

http://lobsterand swan.blogspot.com

Darkness and light

From darkness comes light which forms beautiful shadows and dances off trees forever shining its beauty.....time has a way of slipping by without even noticing it has gone.......and this oak tree shown here so bare is now a thing of wonder again because nature now it is spring tells the tree it is time to come to leaf and it has had the first leaves that were a vivid lime green........they have grown more each day silently until they have turned dark green and flutter in the breeze and sing wind songs to me........





Here is the deepest secret nobody knows, there is the root of the root and the bud of the bud, and the sky of the sky of a tree called life, which grows higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide, and this is the wonder thats keeping the stars apart. I carry your heart, i carry it in my heart........ee cumings

White flowers

Sometimes i just have to have flowers in the house and my favourite are the white ones as i love the contrast between the white and the green.......i brought these beautiful flowers called stock because not only do they look good but they smell divine!!




I also like that they keep growing once put in water and that the buds continue to open out so the perfume is even stronger....




To me walking into a room with flowers gives you a real lift, like the room is instantly brighter and it affects your mood whenever you see them.....there is something so special about flowers and in another life i think i would have been a florist ..... to be surrounded by that beauty everyday and being able to give it away to someone must be very special indeed......

A winters Day

Its funny how when you wake up in the morning and throw back the curtains and look at the day how it can influence how you feel, when i saw this misty fog staring right back at me i thought oh no!! we have to travel in that!......i hate the fog........but as we rounded the corner of our street i was struck by the beauty of this tree and had to stop to take a photo because in the midst of the fog was this lovely yellow and yellow means sun doesn't it?





As we continued our travels along the road we take many times now to get to the mount and to this day which was to celebrate our youngest grandsons first birthday i couldn't help but start to smile at the way the light was beginning to welcome us on our journey.....the mist rode along the top of the mountains as we too travelled on our way and the sun shone down on us casting the most amazing shadows and instantly I started to feel good about this day unfolding.....life is like that isn't it always full of surprises and we never know what is around the corner.......

I am not afraid of tomorrow
For I have seen yesterday
And I love today

Life is precious so live each day.....

(sorry do not know where this image came from)

Sometimes we get to the end of the week and wonder where it has gone and what we have done with it.....sometimes we just have to take the time to actually live each day and enjoy it and even remember it......i wanted to share with you this poem written by a young girl in hospital with terminal cancer......

SLOW DANCE

Have you ever watched children on a merry go round?
or listened to the rain slapping on the ground?
Ever followed a butterflys erratic flight?
or gazed at the sun into the fading night?
You better slow down
Don't dance so fast
Time is short
The music won't last

Do you run through each day on the fly?
When you ask "how are you" do you hear the reply?
When the day is done do you lie in your bed?
with the next hundred chores running through your head?
You'd better slow down
Don't dance so fast
Time is short
The music won't last

Ever told your child "we'll do it tomorrow"
and in your haste not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch, let a good friendship die
cause you never had time to call and say "hi"?
You'd better slow down
Don't dance so fast
Time is short
The music won't last

When you run so fast to get somewhere
you miss half the fun of getting there
When you worry and hurry through your day
it is like an unopened gift......thrown away
Life is not a race do take it slower
Hear the music!
Before the song is over!