SOMETHING BORROWED...

 

Every October, 
for some unknown reason, 
I automatically start humming and singing Christmas carols. 
 This is a phenomenon 
that has occurred for a number of years
 and is still going strong.

 
 A couple of weeks ago I read Michele's

 lovely post (here)  
about us all needing 

a little Christmas in our lives, 
so you might imagine that 
"We Need A Little Christmas" is

 at the forefront of 

my playlist, in my head, right now

 and I thought it fitting to borrow
 the sentiment for my post today.

Not only is the tune catchy,
  but it is so true...

"Haul out the holly;
Put up the tree before my spirit falls again.
Fill up the stockings, 
I may be rushing things, but deck the halls again now
For we need a little Christmas
Right this very minute,
Candles in the window,
Carols at the spinet.
Yes, we need a little Christmas
Right this very minute.
We need a little Christmas now."

 We Need a Little Christmas

Written by Jerry Herman for the Broadway musical Mame in 1966

...truer today than

 maybe ever before.

As I move along 
about the business of decorating,
 borrowing time from fixing the Thanksgiving meal and 
keeping in mind 
that the clock is ticking and soon
 Santa Claus will be coming 
to town...

...I am showing you pieces of Christmas 
that I have accomplished so far. 
 In time, you will be getting the full picture
 of the Olde Homestead Christmas 
but for now 
I am drifting throughout the Cottage, 
adding the magic here and there, 
wherever I think it needs it.

I hope you all had 
a blessed Thanksgiving, 
celebrating it in the best way possible 
that you could this year.

  I made some butternut squash soup...

...but we borrowed 

Raley's expertise 
for the main course...

...and I also made a dessert recipe 
of Cherry Crumble from the wonderful  Kitty's Kozy Kitchen 
that I borrowed from her long ago.
As you can see, 
when I said we would be eating our meal among chaos, 
I wasn't lying.

  
I have never been able to accomplish
 a good photograph of food 
so you will just have to take my word 
that it was very good and

 looked so pretty.

My two angels 
that are on display always, 
donned their little lace choir collars
 in an idea that was borrowed straight from a sign I saw on 
Antique Warehouse which stated simply
 "Hear the Angels Voices".

So many little touches of Christmas,

 borrowed from my memories of childhood,

 especially from my Mom. 

 Three years ago 

 I wrote a piece about her 

and all the Christmases passed 

that she provided for our family.  

Just in case you might have missed it 

the first time around, 

you can find it here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you went back to read 

this Christmas Past post, 

you might be wondering

 how Bo is doing.  

He is under the care of 

Tami and Tim's vet these last few years

 and with the right meds

 he is remaining seizure free

 and as beautiful

 as ever:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 In other words,

 borrowed from a recent post, 

what better time

 to "play house"

 than at Christmas?

Barely even started 
the decorating
 and already there is 
a present 
under the tree!

(with one tiny ornament already knocked off)

Bless his little heart!

Christmas is returning to the Cottage 

little by little and 

the beautifully applied red stained glass

 is borrowing the exact sentiments

 from the holly berries 

seen through 

the lace curtains.

As I move on to more decorating, 
I'll leave you with a quote
 I borrowed from a very wise and

 most admired lady
 in one of last year's posts: 

Stay Smart
Stay well
and
Wear Your Mask.

Spread the word
not the virus!

Here is a laugh 

that I borrowed from

 my sister:

Calm Down!

Walmart is just asking you

 to wear a mask. 

 You can still wear 

your pajamas and 

leave your bras and teeth 

at home.

Have a great week! 

...Judy...

Sharing today with:

Love Your Creativity at Life and Linda