christmas prep ~ and my version of a bar cart

I'm mostly ready for Christmas. You might notice from the photo below that I added some sparkly garland and faux pine branches to the window to jazz it up a little. I still have to wrap every single present. I hate wrapping, so I procrastinate until the last moment. You'd think that after all these years I'd have learned my lesson by now. But nooo, the torture continues year after year. My saving grace is gift bags. Put the present in the bag with some tissue paper and it's done. If I do have to wrap a present with actual wrapping paper, it ends up looking like a five-year old had free reign with the scissors and paper. Don't even talk to me about any kind of fancy ribbons or bows. Give me a to/from sticker and I'm good to go. But hey, it's all about what's inside the package, right? No, I didn't wrap those boxes with the pretty blue bows in front of the window. That was done by a talented clerk at a local shop.

I did most of my shopping online ahead of time, so that gave us a chance to leisurely pick up a couple of gifts in a nearby town that has some beautiful independent shops. I've mentioned the Woodstock Square on my blog in the past. Woodstock is the town where they filmed the movie, Groundhog Day. Last week, our weather had been unseasonably warm and rainy. On this particular day when I stepped outside of a store and saw the trees and the Opera House in the background shrouded in fog, I had to snap a pic. I thought it was breathtakingly beautiful.

One of the stores we stopped in had a display of humorous cards. Do you like to read random greeting cards when you see a display? I do. This one made me laugh out loud.

Speaking of drinks...I see everywhere that bar carts are the new thing. I'm assuming this was brought on by Mad Men. We're not big drinkers (heck, we're barely small drinkers) nor do I entertain a lot, so I'm not about to go out and buy a bar cart. However, I did have bottles of accumulated booze from over the years sitting in a cabinet in the basement, plus I had my grandma's cocktail pitcher and a couple of glasses in the cabinet, which are really too pretty to be stored away. So, I brought everything out and arranged it on the console table in the basement family room. The wine rack had already been on the console table. 

Here's the cocktail pitcher (at least that's what I think it is - if I'm incorrect or it has some kind of official name, let me know) and glasses that belonged to my grandma. I don't think she ever used them. She had a lot of pretty stuff that accumulated in her china cabinet. And before you think we drink crappy liquor like Wild Turkey (see the bottle in the background?) ~ that was left here by one of Tim's friends last year. I told Tim he needs to take it back to his place next time he comes here. I asked him if anyone would drink it when he has a party. He said, "Are you kidding, Mom? College kids will drink anything." Sadly true.

The one drink we do like is Moscow Mules. It's our traditional family drink when Tim comes home for a visit. You're supposed to drink Moscow Mules from a copper mug, but we only have one. So we had our MMs out of our regular water glasses last time Tim was here. We keep it classy. ;-)  Well, lo and behold, I was in Goodwill the other day and found these three pretty glasses that I thought would be perfect for our Moscow Mules - at least until I can find two more copper mugs at a decent price. In the meantime, can't beat it for 50 cents each for pretty cocktail glasses.

Happy weekend! I hope that you're done with all your Christmas prep so that you can finally relax (with a drink?) ~ or perhaps you need one. Feel free to stop by...Wild Turkey is up for grabs.