Christmas Pictures…

These first four pictures were taken in our library.
Most of our house is somewhat rustic and while it does fit with the
wooded, rural setting, it’s not really my preferred style. The library,
on the other hand, is a bit more feminine and *me*.

The painting over the piano was done by David’s grandmother and the
Santa in pink velvet on the lower left side
of the bookshelves belonged to her, as well.
The bookshelves are quite deep and while you can’t tell
from the picture, the books are two layers deep.

“Hello. My name is Deanna and I’m a book-aholic.”

The leather-topped coffee table belonged to David’s other grandmother.
Not long after it was given to us, I found the two end tables which
are a perfect match. I love older furniture.

This picture turned out rather dark so you probably
can’t really make out the purple velvet drapes.
David was a little unsure when I told him I had ordered these
but he had to admit they really looked nice when I put them up.
Purple is my favorite color. 🙂

Final shot of the library looking toward the entry.
The hutch on the left belonged to David’s mom
and the organ on the right to his grandmother.
You can’t see it well, but the table in the entry where I
currently have our nativity displayed,
is an antique, round oak table that belonged to
my great grandmother.
We are blessed to have so many lovely family
heirlooms in our home.

Christmas Eve afternoon with my cousins and their families.
Fortunately their house has lots of windows and two
fireplaces because the power went out about
fifteen minutes after we arrived.

We have a long-standing family tradition in which my dad
reads the Christmas story to all the children on
Christmas Eve. This year, the roads were getting
really treacherous when my parents arrived so they decided not to stay.
Paul, my cousin’s husband, was asked to read the story
in place of my dad. He sat down to read and commented on the fact
that we didn’t have any really young children in the family anymore, and no one
to sit in his lap. Of course, David immediately took that as his cue to
inject a bit of silliness into the event.
(You can’t tell from the picture but Paul is wearing a Santa hat.)

Since Chris has decided to go vegetarian,
I’m cooking most of our meals “meatless”.
That is why Chris bought his dad a really good rib eye steak
at the local meat market as part of his gift.
One of these nights when David decides he needs
some meat instead of our usual vegetarian fare, he can
throw this steak on the grill.
And according to the guys in the family, every steak
deserves a good beer.

This one is blurry but it’s too sweet not to include.
Malory truly enjoys being held like a baby and
at 14 years of age, we all indulge him.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!