Sneak Peek MONDAY - Master Bath Faucets

Surprise! It's Sneak Peek MONDAY! 

Sneak Peeks are normally reserved for Fridays, but I was sorta kinda busy this weekend with Thanksgiving and all. It's not December until tomorrow, so I thought I would hold back on the Christmas stuff and throw in a tiny peek at the master bath.

The master bath is not yet finished, but all the plumbing is working. There's still (1) a few trim pieces to install (2) mirrors to hang above the vanity (3) vanity doors & hardware to attach (4) linen closet shelves to build (5) linen closet doors to hang (6) towel bars & t.p. holder to put up (7) barnwood skirting to attach to the tub surround and (8) tile to install on the backsplash & top of the tub surround. I have a temporary shelving unit in the linen closet for now, so the room is quite functional. We were using the master bath shower and the upstairs guest bath sink for a while, so it's nice to now have 2 working sinks in the master. Here's a peek at the vanity faucets. 

The finish is called rustic bronze - not as dark & more copper flecks than oil rubbed bronze.

I like how the neck/spout can turn from side to side.

The mirrors are just propped up in back of the faucets until Steve has time to hang them. I have a few other things higher up on his list. Soon, though!

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Sunday Reflections

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Black Friday

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Thanksgiving Day

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Snow Chart?

Have you been wondering why I haven't been updating my snowfall chart this season? I have 2 reasons for that.

First, we haven't had much snow this season. Secondly, Steve recently met the man who takes the snowfall measurements for Keweenaw County, but for some unknown reason they haven't been updating their website. 

Since I don't know when Keweenaw County is going to begin posting the 2015-16 totals, I've decided to use the measurement taken just south of Mohawk in Allouez Township of Keweenaw County - at least for now. Unfortunately, the totals in that area are usually lower than the totals further north closer to where we live.

The snowfall chart (in the Blog Pages column at the left) is now updated for the 2015-16 season. (If Keweenaw County begins posting, I'll modify my chart.) Don't expect a lot of change soon, as we don't have a lot of snow in the forecast. Of course, that can sometimes change quickly up here!

It's interesting to note that we've had just shy of 10" this year, but our total stood at 58" last year on this date, and we had 66" by the end of last November.

Have a spectacular and blessed Thanksgiving tomorrow!

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Love This. . .

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Sunday Reflections

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Thanksgiving Cloud

Isn't this a wonderful time of year? Thanksgiving is less than a week away, and it will be Christmas before we know it. That means everyone is pretty busy. 

Oh, and did I mention. . . ?

  

My hubby is in the woods waiting for a buck to make a fatal mistake by crossing his path. That leaves me in the house thinking about the upcoming holidays. Even though it will be just the 3 of us on Thanksgiving (Hubby, me & Mom), we will still enjoy the traditional Thanksgiving meal. Since I don't want to be down for the count with severe back problems the following day/week/month, I try to do as much as possible ahead of time to make it easy on myself on Thanksgiving Day. Sometimes I just make a turkey breast, but I'm doing the full turkey this year.

The sweet corn and butternut squash are already in the freezer. The microwave will heat up those 2 dishes on Thursday. I made 3 loaves of pumpkin bread and 8 mini loaves of banana bread yesterday. Mom volunteered the desserts - a pumpkin pie & a cherry pie. That's more than enough for sweets. I'm making my mom's homemade buttermilk rolls on Monday, and I'll freeze those in bags of 12. Those are a must-have on Thanksgiving and Christmas. In addition to using them for the meal, they make the absolute best turkey sandwiches ever! I'll make the coleslaw and cut up the onions and celery for the stuffing on Wednesday. All I'll have to make on Thanksgiving is the turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy. Plus, we'll be sure to set out the extras - pickles, olives, cranberry sauce. Steve will want something to snack on before the meal is ready, too. Will it be crackers and cheese - or some type of fish spread - or both? We'll see what strikes him when we make our last grocery run on Sunday.

I'll set up most of the food buffet style instead of cramming it all onto the dining table. It's nice to have plenty of elbow room. The island is just steps away, so we won't have far to travel for seconds anyway! A week from now, we'll still be eating leftovers. I sometimes think I enjoy those even more.

Just typing that list of food makes me think about how many people in this world have never even seen a meal like that in their lifetime. Starvation is still a nasty fact of life for many people. We are so blessed here in America - here in Michigan - here in the Keweenaw. We certainly don't deserve all that the Lord has done for us, so Steve & I make thankfulness a part of our daily prayer life and strive to make it a part of our daily communication with each other.

I made a simple Thanksgiving Word Cloud. . .

and framed it to remind us of just a few of our blessings.

I'll put it on the kitchen island along with the food on Thanksgiving.

I made it pretty generic, so if you would like to print one for your Thanksgiving buffet table or display, click on the following link:

Thankful Cloud 5x7

If you aren't currently connected to your printer, you can download the PDF to print later. I made it to print as a 5x7, but feel free to change it to whatever size you wish. (I changed mine to print for a 3.5x5 frame.)

Now, go back to your busy and blessed lives, and get ready for that turkey!

All is well in the Keweenaw.

From Fall to Thanksgiving

I'm writing this on Thursday afternoon and will schedule it to post at midnight. As you can see through my window, we're in the midst of a snow/wind event.

It has been very windy all week, but they just issued a high wind warning from now until tomorrow (Friday) - with gusts in the 60 mph range. Yikes! With all the trees on this peninsula, there's a high probability we could lose power. I'm really hoping that won't happen, as I have some really sweet-looking ribs in the slow cooker for tonight's dinner. Anyway, with all the snow swirling outside right now, my blog topic seems rather strange, but here we go! 

I usually put up my Christmas decorations 2-5 days after Thanksgiving, so the house is decorated for a total of about 5 weeks. My fall decor is out much longer, so I don't put everything out right away. I gradually add to it as we get closer to Thanksgiving. I already wrote about my t.p. pumpkins and my super simple fall wreath (made with a winter scarf), and you saw some of the fall/Thanksgiving items on "The Wild Thing" the other day. One change I made early on in the season was the display on the dining table. I added a burlap table runner, and I modified the centerpiece. I usually have some faux apples under the cake dome in the center of the table. (OK, you caught me. My cake dome is not often used for a layer cake, as I'm more of a 9x13 kind of girl.) I removed some of the faux apples and added in some pinecones and faux acorns.

As we stepped further into fall, I added 2 pumpkins to the table. I got these at Dollar Tree. They're so ugly, they're cute.

As we hit November, I dug out the pumpkin salt & pepper shakers. . .

and tossed some seasonal items into a candy dish.

I also added a table runner on top of the buffet.

The framed "Thankful and Blessed" print and the burlap & metal pumpkin were out earlier.

The larger frame in the back holds pressed leaves and birch bark I picked up on this property the day we got married.

I had this small table on our stair landing until I replaced it with "The Wild Thing," so I moved it in back of the sofa. I may put a different table there eventually, but that's what's there for now. I added some faux flowers, a wicker pumpkin and a decorative box.

I have one other item on the table next to the sofa that I'll tell you about on Saturday or Monday - with another free printable - presuming I have power! 

Just another week or so, and this will all be replaced with Christmas stuff!

All is well (and windy & snowy) in the Keweenaw.

Wild Thing

When we were cleaning out Grandma's house after she died 3 years ago, most of us remarked on the uniqueness of a piece of antique furniture that was in one of the bedrooms. The word "wild" was thrown about a bit, so I've started to refer to the piece as "The Wild Thing." The finish is far from perfect and the mirrors are a little cloudy from age, but that's part of the charm.

The Wild Thing is actually a mahogany Art Noveau etagere or display cabinet. It's been in our basement since April - in back of a lot of boxes. Steve spent some time rearranging/organizing the basement last week. When he got all the boxes moved that were in front of it, he asked me if I wanted him to bring it up. Duh, yeah. I'll gladly spend 2 hours giving it a good cleaning!

I knew I had room for it on our stair landing, so we moved it into place. The stairs, landing and railing aren't "finished" yet, but the piece is so lightweight that it will be easy to move when Steve gets to the stair project this winter. In the meantime, it still gives me more display space.

Here she is decked out for fall and/or Thanksgiving.

It's another piece in our home that has a story, and I'm thankful to have it.

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Sunday Reflections

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Chevron Tags

I told you I would be back with another design for Christmas gift tags. I made this one in a red chevron pattern.

I designed them in just one size - 8 per 8.5x11 sheet - and they'll look like this when your printer spits them out:

Again, they're best if printed on white cardstock. I left a little extra room at the bottom of this sheet, as some printers may need more than a 1/2 inch for the bottom margin. 

After printing, just cut them out, punch the hole and use ribbon or twine to attach them to packages.

If you would like to download them to your computer to save as a PDF - or - if you would like to print them immediately, click on the following link.

Gift Tags - Red ZigZag - 8 per sheet

We'll go back to thinking about Thanksgiving in the upcoming week!

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Photographic Evidence

I don't know why Marty & Donna always refer to my mom as my imaginary mother. I have photographic evidence that she's alive and well. Scroll down to see the proof!




Keep going.




Keep going.




Keep going.




OK, here she is helping me pick thimbleberries this year.

Too bad I didn't get her shoes in that photo - they reminded me of rubies.

Next, I have a photo of her all dolled up for dinner out with us recently.

Here she is in her everyday attire.

This next outfit was green, and she was dressed to impress.

Finally, here she was going to a party this past summer.

Boy, that was a weird angle - can't even see her arms!

I think it's neat how she hasn't aged much since she was a girl, and her smile never changes.

I'm not sure what she'll be wearing for dinner at The Hut tonight. I'll be sure to snap some more photos.

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Friday the 13th

We're taking her to The Hut for her FREE birthday meal tonight! 

Oh, and we went from color to black & white overnight.

It's gorgeous, though! Back to warmer temps tomorrow for another week.

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Thought for the Day

In a sermon preached in November of 1861, Charles H. Spurgeon said the following about the Bible and daily Bible reading:

"We are so busy reading magazines, newspapers, and new books, and so forth that we forget this - this new book - this that is always new, and always old, always having a freshness in it. Like a well, it is always springing up, not with musty, stale water, but with fresh water that has never sparkled in the sun before.... Let us go to this fountain and drink...."

Isn't that great? He referred to the Bible as "this new book." It obviously wasn't new - even back in 1861 - but he meant that it's always fresh. We can always learn something new from it. God can use a verse we've read hundreds of times in a new and different way to teach us something we haven't seen before. It was true in 1861, and it's true in 2015. What a blessing!

All is well in the Keweenaw.

Snowflake Fun

Watching those big, fat snowflakes falling on Saturday (and more in the forecast) really put me in the mood for Christmas. I know, I know, we have to get through Thanksgiving first. But, you have to understand that I've been dreaming about decorating this house for Christmas since we first started dreaming about this house - roughly 12 years ago! I know I have boxes and bins full of Christmas decorations - some of which I haven't used or even looked at for years. I also have 3 artificial Christmas trees:

1. a brand new pre-lit 9 footer we picked up last year (on a Walmart mega clearance after Christmas) - for the great room.
2. an older 7 footer that we haven't used for 7 or 8 years - for the loft.
3. a slender 6 footer that we did use for the last 7 or 8 years - for the foyer.

Yes, you got that right. I AM going to put up ALL 3 trees. I know you're thinking I'm nuts, but this house is large enough to handle it, so I'm going to go "hog wild" (as Steve puts it). You'll be reading more about my Christmas decorating later, but I'm going to write about a little Christmas craft project today - Snowflake Gift Tags.

I found the free printable plain brown tags on an Internet site a while ago (can't remember where). I also found the snowflake clipart on the Internet, and I changed it into snowflakes of different colors. I opened up Microsoft Publisher and used both the plain tags and the snowflakes to create a new design - putting 20 tags on one page that can be printed on 8.5x11 white cardstock. It looks like this.

If you would like to print Christmas gift tags like these for your packages, simply click on the link below. I already did the work, so it will take you to a PDF version that you can print immediately or download to your computer before printing.

20 tags per page

I suppose you could print them on regular white paper, but they would be a little flimsy for gift tags, so I suggest 8.5x11 cardstock. If you've never purchased cardstock, it's sold at most major retailers that sell copy paper. It should be in the same aisle.

Anyway, print them, cut them out, punch the holes. . .

and add some twine or ribbon to attach them to packages.

These little snowflake gift tags could even be used for ornaments on a small tree. I made the pattern in 3 different sizes, so they could also be used on a larger tree. I'm thinking about printing some larger ones on a piece of 8.5x11 laminated burlap for ornaments. 

Or, you may just want a larger gift tag. Whatever. . . . Here's how they look set up for 12 per sheet:

If you prefer this larger size of 12 per sheet, click on the following link:

12 tags per page

Here's how they look set up for 8 per sheet.

If you want that size, click on the next link:

8 tags per page

Here's another idea: These snowflake tags could also be modified by writing a letter on each one with a marker or paint pen - maybe to spell out "MERRY CHRISTMAS" - and then strung on a piece of twine or clipped to a piece of twine or thin garland to be used as a banner. (If you have some computer knowledge, you could do it on your computer. You could stamp the letters, too.)

A lot of folks are hanging seasonal/holiday banners from their fireplace mantels or in windows nowadays. Each cardstock "tag" could even be glued to a slightly larger piece of burlap for a little extra oomph. Lots of possibilities here.

If you're not sure whether or not you want to print these, I'll have another gift tag printable later this week or early next week.

Now, don't go all Scrooge on me and get annoyed that I'm mentioning Christmas already. It will be here in just 43 more days! Here's a link to a countdown clock:

Your Christmas Countdown

All is well in the Keweenaw.