The Hallmark Store

That's where I was this week.... looking for sales on Halloween items for next year's party, and getting some ideas for Thanksgiving placecards and favors. I've said it before and I'll say it again-- once Halloween comes and goes, the rest of the year just disappears. And that's just what is happening.

Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Right after that, the big Christmas tree will go up in the living room, along with all the table top trees for every other room in the house. Invitations will go out for our Christmas Party, then for Christmas dinner, and I've got to get a group together for New Year's Eve dinner here at our house. Our friends B and P want to drive down from Dallas to spend New Year's Eve with us down here. So I've got to come up with a dinner plan to make their trip worthwhile. (Such pressure.)

I have all the invitations already..... the ones for the Christmas party are all written out, and I'm working on the placecards for Christmas dinner. I have great New Year's Eve invitations--- cards in the shape of a champagne bottle! I found them during the summer and bought them just for New Year's Eve. I'll have to think of a clever placecard.... maybe I can find tiny champagne bottles or glasses, and attach name-tags to them, along with lots of sparkling ribbon. And favors for New Year's could be small bottles of champagne.

One holiday at a time....... but does it ever work that way? Thankfully, the closet in my sitting room is filled floor to ceiling with shelves. Right now, I've got eBay items to sell on half of the shelves, and the other shelves are divided up with holiday things that I'm working on--- for Thanksgiving, for the Christmas party, for the dinner on Christmas Day, and for New Year's Eve. It has been a busy, busy week.

I've also spent a lot of time in the local fabric store... so many pretty ribbons.... and large squares of fabric called "fat quarters," which I think means the fabric pieces measure a bit more than a quarter of a yard. They had them on sale, two for a dollar. I bought all the ones they had with Halloween designs, which I'll use to make "favor bundles" for next year's Halloween party. Then I found some pretty designs to use for the tea parties. Bundles of goodies, all tied up with silk ribbons. So many ribbons, and those were all on sale also.

On top of all of this, our friend J wants to have a Card Party Night. The gift he got at our Halloween party was a game box filled with two decks of cards, a book of card tricks and a book of card games. Perfect gift for J-- and he chose it from a bunch of wrapped surprises, so he didn't know what was in that box. As soon as he unwrapped it, he got it in his mind that we (translation: me) should have a Card Party Night. I told him I'd see what I could do.... if we keep it to a small group, maybe we could squeeze that in before Thanksgiving. Maybe. (Translation: I'm working on it.)

Add to the mix...... my husband and I came up with a great Christmas surprise for our young friends C and L. I have already spoken to both of their moms, and they both agreed the girls would love it, and they set aside the date for us. Now we'll work on getting tickets, and we're planning not to tell the girls where we're going or what we're doing until we get there.

This time of the year is always jam-packed with things to do, people to see, places to go, plans to make, parties to host. I haven't even given a thought as to the menu for the Christmas party, but we've booked the entertainment for the night, so at least that part is done.

There's a new exhibit at the Houston Science Museum.... a celebration of the life of Princess Diana. They've got hundreds of her personal items on display--- clothing, childhood mementos, jewelry, even her wedding gown. We'll make time to get downtown to see that, at some point between now and the end of the year. All these years since she passed away, and its still hard to believe that her life ended so tragically.

I was at the dentist the other day, and the technician who cleans my teeth is a Disney fan of the highest order. She goes to either Disneyland or Disney World every year or every other year, and this year, she and her family will be spending Christmas in Disney World. She's so excited that she's counting down the days... I think she has 45 days now before they leave.

Christmas with Disney. Now that's an idea..... but not this year.

My grandmother's house was a party house...... every weekend, just about, that big house was filled with family and friends. My Aunt Dolly was the party-maker.... my grandmother did the cooking and the baking. Since we've been in this house, I think my Aunt Dolly's creativity has seeped into every pore of my being. (Translation: life is good.)