Something New & Something Old ~ One is silver & the other gold

For those of you who have been to our house. We have now lived here over two years.. it was two years in August.. and for those two years we have had this really huge empty room upstairs that we didnt know what to do with.

It is a room that leads to the movie room and it has a balcony over the living room downstairs so you really cant make it into another bedroom, which would have been nice, so we toyed with the idea of making it a pool-table or ping-pong table room or exercise room etc.. none of which appealed to me.

So, after two years of it sitting empty, I came up with a plan that made both Fred and me happy.  I wanted a large storage closet and Fred wanted an office. I can't stand a garage that is full of junk... even though my junk was quite organized on nice shelves in the garage, it still feels kinda trailer-trash to me.. and whenever fred studies or writes, etc.. , he loads down the only dining table in the house and has to move his stuff around every time we eat.  So, our rooms are finally finished. Fred hasnt even seen them yet since he's still in Cambodia. This is how our former huge empty room looks now!

Closer look at Fred's new office. I think I'm jealous

Looking from down the hall

Sorry, I didnt think about taking pictures inside the new closet but it is much like the awesome one I used to have in the Lakewood house upstairs.

So, when we were clearing out the garage and moving into the new closet, we decided that anything we didnt put out for Christmas was going to Goodwill or to anyone who wanted it.  Therefore, we opened every single box and looked in all the closets throughout the house.

I hadn't put out my Department 56 North Pole Christmas houses since we moved out of Rivers Run in Oak Ridge in 2004 so my Elf, otherwise known as my very hard-working husband, put up the whole village while I held my breath praying that they wouldn't fall and break into bits.  Here's his final creation.

It's a little busy but oh well, they are beautiful when the room lights are off.

As you can see our mantel is getting very full of stockings. We added another son-in-law to the family this past September and couldnt be happier. But, we always have room for new "little" stockings! (spoken like a true grandma)

Now for the very best of the Christmas treasures.  Many of you may not know that I love quilts. I made my very first quilt when I was only 9, with the help of my grandmother, Violet.  I have made about seven or eight quilts.  Most were made in the first 10 years after college (before the internet and I had more free time). I will post pictures of them sometime soon but I wanted to post three of my most favorite quilts of all. My mother made these. This first Christmas quilt is so amazing. She made each block with an embroidered Christmas tree in the center and each one is unique. Of course, this whole quilt is handmade and hand quilted.  I just LOVE this quilt!

 
I love that she signed the corner with her initials and the year it was made! We may need to put the 19 in front of the 92 because I believe this quilt will be around in 2092 when Ella Rose is 84 years old. (weird thought)

This little "throw" that mom made is always on my couch at Christmas. Mom told me at Thanksgiving that she made this entire throw in only one week. That is amazing considering it was all done by hand and the craftsmanship is superb!

She signed it too but didnt put the year but I remember that it has been around long enough to be in this picture of Marissa back in 1986.

And this is one of my favorite quilts also. It is made of velvet. I dont know what year it was made either but I have photos of it back in 1985 on my antique bed in Cleveland (18th St house)

Here it is with Rachel, Sarah, Abby, and Marissa way back in 1985 or 1986. This was our house on 18th Street that is now the softball field in front of the Boys Dorm, "the mansion" at Lee University. Wish I still had this beautiful old bed!

I love new things at Christmas but I will always cherish the old things the most!