Everyday Living

An All Natural Christmas Tablescape

~ Christmas, Everyday Living, Faith, Tablescape Tuesday

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
‭‭John‬ ‭3:16‬ ‭

Hello sweet readers. I can hardly believe that Christmas is two weeks from tomorrow. There are still presents to be bought and wrapped, goodies to be baked and shared, and most importantly time to be spent with family and friends. Tomorrow is our son’s birthday. I shall never forget that Christmas morning thirty four years ago when we placed him under our Christmas tree. We wept tears of joy for God’s answered prayer for a child. We will celebrate on Thursday evening with dinner at our house. The menu never changes as I prepare his favorites…manicotti and red velvet cake. Today’s tablescape was set with him in mind!

The table is set for four, but will change on Thursday to accommodate nine smiling faces. For many years I entertained all during the holidays. Often I would invite three or four couples, but there was always something special when there was only one couple sitting across the table from us. It allowed time for meaningful conversation.

The Lynch Creek Farm “woodland birch” centerpiece is still fresh, so once again it is making an appearance. I removed it from the blue and white bowl and placed it inside a wicker tray in keeping with an all natural look running down the center of the table.READ MORE

Simple + Southern Sunday No. 266

~ Christmas, Everyday Living, Faith, Granddaughter, Outdoors, Simple + Southern Sunday

“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.”
‭‭Micah‬ ‭5:2‬ ‭

The dawning of a fresh day. It’s always more interesting with clouds and no two sunrises are ever exactly the same!

We spent time this past week at home and around the area just noticing the natural colors we typically associate with Christmas, particularly the reds and greens!READ MORE

The Nativity

~ Christmas, Everyday Living, Faith

Hello dear friends! I am honored that you have chosen to spend a little time with me. As many of you know, I am a collector to a fault. Included in my collections are nativities. According to Wikipedia, in the Christianity tradition, a nativity scene (also known as a manger scene, crib, or creche) is the special exhibition of art objects, particularly during the Christmas season, representing the birth of Jesus. My first collected manger scenes were made of ceramic, created by the loving hands of my precious mother. Many years later, Renaissance Man surprised me with a Hummel nativity that I dearly love and it is always the first Christmas decoration that is unpacked. My only niece gifted me a lovely hand-carved creche from South Africa, and a nephew brought one made of corn shucks from Uganda. As you can see, my collection is diverse. About fifteen years ago I was shopping in a nearby city when I spotted it …a large and lovely nativity that I knew immediately had to come home with me.

So many of you have asked about this beautiful nativity that found a home on our hearth. Each Christmas I receive emails and comments asking where I bought it and is it still available. The shop went out of business several years ago and I have never discovered another one in any of my travels. I had planned to move it to another spot, but I listened to you, our readers who said it had to stay on the hearth. So here it is once again, but let’s take a closer look!

“And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child.”READ MORE