Chickadee Home Nest: November 2013

Monday, November 25, 2013

Thanksgiving Blessings Mix

I sure hope I’m not the last person in the USA to learn about Thanksgiving Blessings Mix! I don’t know how I’d missed this really cool mix…kind of like a Chex mix, but its ingredients represent various aspects of Thanksgiving. In the event that there’s one person left who hasn’t seen it, I wanted to hurry up and get it out there—especially for YOU, if you’ve missed it!

I found various versions, and after much searching I was unable to find the author, to make sure I wasn’t violating any copyright laws (if anyone knows differently, please let me know). At any rate, after reviewing various versions I tweaked it a little bit, so this is my version.

I also adapted the “recipe”—really, a recipe? It’s throw in some of this, and add some of that. I followed the ingredients loosely, and didn’t measure a thing.

My version includes:

Original Bugles

Pretzel twists

Candy corn

Craisins

Nuts and seeds: Mixed nuts, because that’s what I had at home, and sunflower seeds

M&Ms: Peanut M&Ms, because that’s what I like best. I didn’t think to look for some in fall colors, so I ended up with a mix that included bright blue—see them in the big jar on the left? They might as well have neon lights on them! I decided the blue had NO PLACE in a Thanksgiving mix, so I pulled those out (and you know what I did with those…well, there was no sense trying to find a small container to store them, right???).

Semi-sweet semi-sweet chocolate morsels

See what I mean about the blue? They could NOT stay.

We’re having Thanksgiving dinner at my brother and SIL’s log cabin. I’ll be taking this big jar of Thanksgiving Blessings Mix as one of the appetizers. I’m pretty sure it’ll be a big hit.

I put a scoop in the jar, to make serving easier (and yes, more sanitary). I have several of these scoops in various sizes and love them. The jar is one of three that we use to store our chips and other munchies, so it and the scoop won’t be hostess gifts.

Speaking of scoops…this one came home with us when we met friends in Richmond, Indiana and went antiquing a few weeks ago. I’ve never seen one like it…on the inside it says that a level scoop equals a 1/4 cup. Pretty cool.

Our son and DIL and their three chickadees will be visiting some of her family in Indiana for Thanksgiving :(, so I prepared a jar of Thanksgiving Blessings Mix for them to take to her family, and one for her parents.

The “recipe” made enough for these three jars plus one medium jar for us to enjoy. I plan on buying more bugles (that’s the only ingredient that I used all of) and making more to take to our neighbors, our favorite lunchtime server and hostess at Max & Erma’s, and a friend whom we see there once a week.

This precious cup was part of an auction box lot…Love it. This fall it has held the acorns Baby Love and I picked up while her little brother played T-ball. He and I are planning on a picking those cute, tiny pinecones from their Canadian Hemlock tree soon. :)

I leave you with my best wishes that your Thanksgiving is filled with happy moments and Blessings.

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Thanks so much for stopping by. I hope you’ll leave me a comment to let me know you were here—I’m thrilled to know you stopped by, and I’ll always visit back and comment too. If you like what you see, I invite you to follow me (I promise to follow back), and please—Pin away and follow me on Pinterest too! Thank you!!

NOTE: Some of the items I use in my posts are in my Etsy shop, but many are not, simply because I haven’t updated my shop. If you see something you like and wonder if it’s available for sale, email me and let’s talk!

Sunday Showcase at http://www.bystephanielynn.com/

Sunday Creative Home and Garden Hop at http://creativehomeexpressions.blogspot.com/

Sundays at The Tablescaper: http://thetablescaper.blogspot.com/

Mop it Up Monday at http://www.ishouldbemoppingthefloor.com

Metamorphosis Monday at http://betweennapsontheporch.net/

Masterpiece Monday at http://boogieboardcottage.blogspot.com/

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at http://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.com

Tuesdays at Our Home at http://mariaelenasdecor.blogspot.com/

Tuesday’s Treasures http://www.myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.com/

Inspire Me Tuesday at http://astrollthrulife.blogspot.com/

Cuisine Kathleen at http://www.cuisinekathleen.com/

Wow Us Wednesdays at http://www.savvysouthernstyle.net/

DIY by Design Party at http://diybydesign.blogspot.com/

What's It Wednesday at http://ivyandelephants.blogspot.com/

Home and Garden Thursday at http://blissfulrhythm.blogspot.com/

Tablescape Thursday at http://betweennapsontheporch.net/

Open House Party Thursday at http://nominimalisthere.blogspot.com

Transformation Thursdays at http://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/

Thursdays at http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com

Feathered Nest Friday at http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/

Home Sweet Home Fridays at http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/

Thrifty Things Friday at http://thethriftygroove.blogspot.com/

Vintage Inspiration Friday at http://commonground-debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.com/

Show and Tell Friday at http://romantichome.blogspot.com/

Fresh-Cut Fridays at http://rosevignettes.blogspot.com

Saturdays at I’m Only One Woman at http://iamonly1woman.blogspot.com

From my nest to yours~

Zuni

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Santa Train Breakfast

Last year we took the grand-chickadees on a Santa train ride. They spent the night the night before, and to get in the spirit we had a Santa Train Breakfast. (It was too late in the season to post it then, so now is the time!)

I searched high and low for a large train centerpiece, and the only one I could find (besides a $200 one!) was unfinished, so I pulled out my paints and to work I went, to create our very own version of the Santa Express. I set the table after the babies were asleep, to surprise them in the morning…and were they!

Since this was a Christmas train, Santa was the driver, of course, and he had his train filled to the brim with all sorts of toys (I raided their toy boxes :)). The top is very vintage—when the babies’ father (our son) was born I really wanted an old, “real” top, not the kind that had a base at the bottom and therefore wouldn’t move around, and my mother found this one for him, so it’s much older than he is. The Night Before Christmas book was also his and his brother’s.

Of course, no Christmas train story would be complete without a jingle bell (a nod to The Polar Express). They each took their bell to the train ride and took one for their little cousin who was joining us.

While they waited for breakfast to be served Baby Boy Chickadee #1 and his sister, Baby Love, entertained themselves with the goodies on the table~~the nativity scene animals gathered on her napkin, and the small train ornaments came alive in his imagination!

Baby Boy #2 (11 months) had his table set too. :)

And what was on the menu, but TRAIN PANCAKES! Williams-Sonoma carried these pancake molds at one time, but they were no longer available. I was very lucky to have found them on eBay!

This is the best picture I could manage of the finished pancakes…we had hungry little ~~bears~~ chickadees on our hands, and she had already cut the top off when the camera arrived! The steam from the engine is whipped cream (boy, did they like that part!!), made with my handy-dandy iSi cream whipper. You can read all about this favorite gadget here.

Their first course was granola with yogurt and red sprinkles, served in my “best” footed bowls—the now-famous holly collection from Arby’s, from years ago! (I’ve had the glasses for years, then our son found these at GW and gave them to me, beautifully wrapped, as a Christmas present!)

And then…SANTA CAME TO OUR TRAIN CAR and visited with each child! We can’t wait to do it again this year, so….

…tell me, please—have you found a good train to use as a centerpiece? Even on Pinterest I haven’t been able to find much. I think this year we might go with their dad’s and uncle’s real train set that they’ve never seen before, but I sure would hate to retire the first one after only one year!

What other children’s Christmas breakfast ideas can you share? We can never have too many ideas!

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I’ll be attending these fun parties:

Feathered Nest Friday at http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/

Home Sweet Home Fridays at http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/

Thrifty Things Friday at http://thethriftygroove.blogspot.com/

Vintage Inspiration Friday at http://commonground-debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.com/

Show and Tell Friday at http://romantichome.blogspot.com/

Friday Tatertots and Jello at http://tatertotsandjello.com

Friday Bacon Time’s party at http://bacontimewiththehungryhypo.blogspot.com

Friday at It's Overflowing

Friday at Shine on Fridays

Fridays at Stuff and Nonsense

Saturday Strut Your Stuff at http://www.sixsistersstuff.com

Sunday Showcase at http://www.bystephanielynn.com/

Sunday Creative Home and Garden Hop at http://creativehomeexpressions.blogspot.com/

Sundays at The Tablescaper: http://thetablescaper.blogspot.com/

Sunday at DIY Show Off

Mop it Up Monday at http://www.ishouldbemoppingthefloor.com

Masterpiece Monday at http://boogieboardcottage.blogspot.com/

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at http://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.com

Tuesdays at Our Home at http://mariaelenasdecor.blogspot.com/

Tuesday’s Treasures http://www.myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.com/

Inspire Me Tuesday at http://astrollthrulife.blogspot.com/

Cuisine Kathleen at http://www.cuisinekathleen.com/

Wow Us Wednesdays at http://www.savvysouthernstyle.net/

DIY by Design Party at http://diybydesign.blogspot.com/

Home and Garden Thursday at http://blissfulrhythm.blogspot.com/

Tablescape Thursday at http://betweennapsontheporch.net/

Open House Party Thursday at http://nominimalisthere.blogspot.com

Transformation Thursdays at http://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/

From my nest to yours~

Zuni

Friday, November 15, 2013

On to Thanksgiving

Don’t you wish the switch from Thanksgiving to Christmas were as easy as from Halloween to Thanksgiving? Since the color scheme can remain the same from Halloween to Thanksgiving, the transition can be quick…and I LIKE quick! Not too much to take down or bring up from the basement…put the Jack-o’-lanterns and such away, leave the pumpkins and corn and pomegranates, add a few other touches, and voilà! WE’RE READY FOR THANKSGIVING!

For our Halloween decor (really, isn’t “decor” a little highfalutin to describe Halloween?? :) ) you might remember that our buffet held terracotta Jack-o’-lanterns and black kittens hidden inside (here). Now it has a more sophisticated look:

I’ve had this cornucopia for many years, and I’ve used it many, many times. What speaks more to the bounty of Thanksgiving than a cornucopia spilling over with vegetables and flowers? To add more interest, I set it on a Wilton Armetale oval platter.

The sterling pedestal compote and its contents…tiny pumpkins and gourds, and of course BUCKEYES…remained from the Halloween vignette…

…as did the pumpkin surrounded by a bit of grapevine.

I absolutely CANNOT WAIT until some sort of BLUETOOTH technology makes all lamps cord-free, how about you? Cords ruin every picture! I’ve noticed that in most magazines the lamps don’t have cords…I too, started to “erase” this one, but it’s time consuming, so no magazine shot here! I’ve seem the fabric covers like the ones for chandeliers, but that doesn’t seem like a solution to me—it just draws even more attention to the cord! So, I’m hoping for Bluetooth :)—SOON!!

The writing desk remained pretty much the same…I added the books and bowls (a new GW find!), and the pumpkins that had been on the table on the front porch came inside. They’ve held up incredibly well!

Ahhhh…sunshine streaming in!

And the china cabinet got its full Thanksgiving look. I’d held on to the blue and white for quite a while this year, but I was actually ready…no, anxious, actually, to move to the brown transferware turkey plates.

I have never done a brown and white china cabinet display before, but something this year seemed to call for that, I think to call attention to the great Royal Stafford turkey plates I bought at Home Goods several years ago.

The turkey plates are smaller than luncheon plates…more of a dessert or salad plate, and the dinner plate behind it is another great Home Goods find. I originally thought I would set our immediate family’s Thanksgiving table (we’ll do it on the Sunday after Thanksgiving this year) with this arrangement, but that may not go over so well. See the beautiful raised border on those plates? Well, it takes up a lot of room that would otherwise be used for FOOD, so I may have a few complaints about that :). Actually, as I think about it, that might be a GOOD THING!

More turkeys—the Friendly Village turkey luncheon plates. (I just found that Johnson Brothers’ Friendly Village also has a PUMPKIN luncheon plate!! I thought I needed about 8 of them, but the Buy it now price on eBay is $39.99 for ONE! Yikes!)

I’ve researched these knives and have been able to find absolutely nothing on them (don’t remember the mark on them now), but I love them. I bought them at a community garage sale years ago; I’m pretty sure they’re pretty old. The color is lovely for fall tables—it’s more yellow than they appear in the picture. Don’t you love that little brad in the handle?

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I love to see all your pictures. Sometimes I wish I could crawl right into my computer screen and see THE DETAILS, so here are a few shots for those readers who share my passion for the details.

DSCN9364

These goblets are now vintage, from the early days of Pottery Barn. Sadly, I broke one and haven’t been able to find a replacement. Is there someone out there who knows where I can find one, or TWO, or FOUR??

Here’s a full view of our Thanksgiving china cabinet~

And last but not least…our FLAG. Those of you who’ve been following me on this fun ride of home and hearth know how much I love to see our flag, swaying softly or briskly at our front porch. One day, as I looked out onto the screened porch I caught this reflection of the flag on our sliding-glass door. Couldn’t have planned it if I’d wanted to:

Feathered Nest Friday at http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/

Home Sweet Home Fridays at http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/

Thrifty Things Friday at http://thethriftygroove.blogspot.com/

Vintage Inspiration Friday at http://commonground-debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.com/

Show and Tell Friday at http://romantichome.blogspot.com/

Fresh-Cut Fridays at http://rosevignettes.blogspot.com

Sunday Showcase at http://www.bystephanielynn.com/

Sunday Creative Home and Garden Hop at http://creativehomeexpressions.blogspot.com/

Sundays at The Tablescaper: http://thetablescaper.blogspot.com/

Mop it Up Monday at http://www.ishouldbemoppingthefloor.com

Metamorphosis Monday at http://betweennapsontheporch.net/

Masterpiece Monday at http://boogieboardcottage.blogspot.com/

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at http://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.com

Tuesdays at Our Home at http://mariaelenasdecor.blogspot.com/

Tuesday’s Treasures http://www.myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.com/

Inspire Me Tuesday at http://astrollthrulife.blogspot.com/

Cuisine Kathleen at http://www.cuisinekathleen.com/

Wow Us Wednesdays at http://www.savvysouthernstyle.net/

DIY by Design Party at http://diybydesign.blogspot.com/

What's It Wednesday at http://ivyandelephants.blogspot.com/

Home and Garden Thursday at http://blissfulrhythm.blogspot.com/

Tablescape Thursday at http://betweennapsontheporch.net/

Open House Party Thursday at http://nominimalisthere.blogspot.com

Transformation Thursdays at http://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/

Thursdays at http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com

From my nest to yours~

Zuni

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Shabby Chic Lil Cowgirl Birthday Party

Our Baby Love turned SIX this week! And to celebrate her birthday we had a BIG cowgirl party.

The venue: The tool barn at her maternal grandparents’ farm.

The challenge: To make the most of the farm surroundings, add burlap and apple crates and marry it all with silver, pink, and lace. FUN, FUN, FUN!

When the idea of the party at the farm was born, my assignment was to help with making things pretty. Baby Love’s mamá had the vision, and I started gathering the goods. (That’s why I need a nice, big basement! LOL) This is the beginning of the transformation. You can see that at this point we’d already grabbed an awesome old ladder and old shutters (far left) and put them into play.

And we transformed it to this:

The dessert table was the main attraction. We also had a food table and a table for the drinks. The backdrop and tablecloths are pieces of a 15’x12’ drop cloth from Lowe’s that I cut. (Some day I’ll tell you the story of washing and drying and cutting a 15’x12’ piece of drop cloth :) . )

Some close ups:

Remember all those hydrangeas I’ve been drying? Some are in a big bin in the basement, and to the party they went! Our first thought was to fill the other apothecary jar with pink- and cream-colored macarons, but there were lots of guests, so we opted for wafers, which turned out to be an excellent choice, especially given the number of children in attendance.

This was Baby Love’s own cupcake and decorated marshmallow. The lollipop stick on her marshmallow includes a flower left over from her tussie mussie I made for her dance recital (you can see that post here).

I’ve seen lots of small glass bottles for children’s drinks, but being worried about safety, Mr. Chickadee and I started saving plastic chocolate-milk bottles (lovely excuse to drink chocolate milk!!). I spray painted the bright blue caps tan to fit our color scheme, and decorated them with twine and ribbons. The tags were used by parents to identify their children’s drinks.

Mamá painted real horseshoes, pink for the girls and copper for the boys, as party favors. I stumbled into these galvanized tins (already rusty, YEA!) at TJ Maxx a few months ago. They had three—one bigger than the other two—and they all came home with me!

White and semi-sweet chocolate-dipped marshmallows were a real treat for the kiddies!The lollipop sticks were decorated with various ribbons and lace to continue the color scheme.

Mamá made the darling garland that will now go in Baby Love’s room, as will the sign with her name on it.

The plates on the plate rack are the romantic Duchess pattern by Paden City (you can see them in more detail here). Their soft colors were perfect for the occasion.

The ladder ultimately filled the space between the dessert and the food tables.

“Ava’s Party…Welcome” by Baby Love, with a drawing of herself, the garland her Mamá made, and of the ladder. ;)

The pink Depression glass cups and saucers and juice glasses came along in my bins just in case, and they came in handy as fillers for the ladder, as a vase for the perfect rose (see below), and to hold the pink-and-white paper straws on the dessert table.

A perfect rose, well suited for Baby Love.

Transitioning to the food table…

We were feeding about 60 people, so the serving pieces needed to be BIG…oh, now I remember why I needed those big Longaberger baskets and crocks years ago! We briefly toyed around with the idea of china and flatware (our son, Baby Love’s Papá, is a chef who does occasional catering jobs, so he could have brought enough), but logistically it didn’t make sense.

And the drinks…

I’ve done “a year in review” with this Pottery Barn vase for each of the babies’ birthdays, but certainly never thought that she had noticed. Well…this year she asked me if I was going to do all her pictures again! Goes to show you, you never know what they’re noticing and what they like. So Yes, Baby Love, I’m doing it again!

There was even a piñata!

Everybody dig in! (And yes, the birthday girl wore a pink saucer tutu, pink-and-black cowboy boots, and a denim jacket.)

~ Confetti from the piñata in her tutu ~

And a few final (whew!) glimpses of The Lil Cowgirl Birthday Party ~

Our little three-year-old nephew, Vinny, came prepared for a cowboy day with his vest, chaps, hat and boots, (though he wouldn’t get on the horse! LOL).

And there were plenty of cowboy boots in all sizes…

This is how Grandpa Ken kept the barn warm for us.

And would you look at the size of these {tractor??} tires?! The horse blanket served to disguise them a bit. And why an empty frame?

To take a picture of Baby Love and each of her little friends on the horse! Each picture will be included in the child’s thank-you note.

It was a PERFECT day. Packing everything but the kitchen sink was well worth it. As Mr. Chickadee and I unloaded the car (just about every inch of an SUV-ful), we talked about all the sweet moments of the day. Sometimes it’s those moments after the fact, when you have time to reflect, that bring it all into full focus…when the memories start to formulate. A precious time…do you find that too?

Those of you who’ve done out-of-town weddings probably know exactly what this was like…and I bet the love and the memories made it all worthwhile, yes?

Thanks so much for stopping by. I hope you’ll leave me a comment to let me know you were here—I read every single one of them! And if you like what you see a lot, maybe you’d like to Google+ this post or pin it on Pinterest too! Thank you!

I invite you to follow me. If you’ll let me know that you’re following, I’ll be sure to follow you back.

Tablescape Thursday at http://betweennapsontheporch.net/

Home and Garden Thursday at http://blissfulrhythm.blogspot.com/

Open House Party Thursday at http://nominimalisthere.blogspot.com

Transformation Thursdays at http://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/

Thursdays at http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com

Feathered Nest Friday at http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/

Home Sweet Home Fridays at http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/

Thrifty Things Friday at http://thethriftygroove.blogspot.com/

Vintage Inspiration Friday at http://commonground-debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.com/

Show and Tell Friday at http://romantichome.blogspot.com/

Fresh-Cut Fridays at http://rosevignettes.blogspot.com