Wednesday, December 30, 2009

New Year's Eve Dinner for Two


New Year's Eve is going to be very quiet this year. Just the two of us! I set a table au deux for tonight behind the living room sofa. The drop leaf table comes in handy for this.


The china is our wedding china, circa 1982. It is the "Henley" pattern by Aynsley. I'm not fond of this pattern anymore, but it was fun creating a table vignette with it, using gold chargers and layering the plates.


These are our toasting glasses, also from our wedding. I had them hand painted and loved them at the time. They will come in handy at midnight as we welcome 2010.

These copper colored mercury glass votives set a more modern tone and bring the whole setting into the new century!

The jardiniere holding the amaryllis is Weller Pottery. I think it compliments the china nicely.


It has been more than 20 years since I have used this china. I'm thinking it looks pretty good!

Mr. A has been aging this bottle of wine for 10 years. He set it set aside for our New Year's Eve dinner. Forget the champagne!

In setting the table with our old china, I couldn't help remembering the past and all the memories that went with these plates. The many dinners and holidays we hosted when we were much younger. I am looking forward to next year hoping it will be also filled with wonderful memories.

So without further ado, we wish you a
HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Be sure to check out more fabulous tablescapes at Between Naps on the Porch, hosted by Susan.

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Dexter goes shopping in San Francisco


The Sunday before Christmas, Mr. A and I took Dexter dog shopping in San Francisco on Union Square. I wanted to see the window displays, the ice rink and do some last minute Christmas shopping. So Dexter donned his tartan plaid vest and we hit the streets. It was great to get into the Christmas mood.

Macy's with all their windows decorated with Christmas wreaths. Below, the ice rink in the heart of Union Square.


Neiman Marcus with it's gigantic tree

Ralph Lauren - my personal favorite. I loved the woodsy theme in the windows. Below, Mr. A poses with Dexter. I think they fit right in!


Mr. A looking dapper in his pea coat.


The window display in the Chanel window had the mannequins in front of a Venice background.


Dexter wearing his Holiday attire. He was only interest in checking his "pee mail".

After lots of window shopping and walking around, we found ourselves on Maiden Lane in front of this wonderful store called Candelier. Uh Oh. This could be dangerous. We went in and found so many candles and decorations for the Christmas table.

This is inside the store! It was very crowded with so much merchandise. I was like a kid in a candy store. Mr. A just went with it. Dexter knew he would be here a while and laid down to wait patiently.

"How long are we going to have to be in here?"

How cute is he?

A lovely shoe store on Maiden Lane.

A window in Gump's - A San Francisco favorite store.

On our way back to the car, we discovered this Scottish import store. I loved the scarves and ties here. I bought a tie for Mr. A and he bought a scarf for me. Of course they are both red tartan plaid! We match Dexter now. Below, a clerk wearing a traditional kilt. Mr. A wasn't interested in buying one!

It turned out to be such a fun afternoon. We finished our Christmas shopping and Dexter had a San Francisco adventure.

Monday, December 28, 2009

CALL Primrose Center


Call-Primrose Ctr

CALL Primrose is a small food pantry located in a 100 year old house in Burlingame, California that serves clients in need of food south of San Francisco on the mid- Peninsula. This year, with the economy being as such, there is a much higher demand for food assistance.

I started volunteering at CALL Primrose in April this year filling in here and there as needed. I found out I was needed indeed and now put in anywhere from one to sometimes three days a week.

December 22nd was the day that clients could get an extra bag of food for the holidays. 253 individuals or families had signed up and had been approved. When I arrived that morning, the line was all the way down the street. It was a clear, but freezing cold day. Some people arrived as early as 6:30 a.m. It took nearly six hours to give everyone their food.

Everyone received a grocery bag of food, including a chicken, a $20 gift card to Safeway, plus a Christmas stocking. The families with children were able to pick out new toys for their small children and received gift cards to Target if they had teenagers.

Executive Director Mary Watt surveying the line from the front porch. All I can say is that this woman makes things happen! She is such an inspiration to me and I always tell her there is a special place in heaven for her!

My dear friend Annette with her son Spencer. They worked so hard bagging up over 200 boxes of groceries along with my son Alex. Although Spencer and Alex just got home for Christmas break from college, they managed to get out of bed early and put in their time.

Alex was also the doorman for a while.

Co-worker Linda all festive in her Holiday gear. She has been volunteering at CALL for several years. Her job was to hand out the Christmas Stockings all filled with toiletries, socks or scarves, etc.

It was a great day! There were so many volunteers to help on this day, from senior citizens to high school and college kids. CALL Primrose gave out an extra box of food at Thanksgiving and will also again for Easter. Normally, a client can come in twice a month for groceries, so to have that extra during the holidays really helps.

CALL relies on the generosity of the local community for donations of food, volunteer time and financial support. Second Harvest Food Bank also is a large source and delivers food once a week.

To learn more about CALL Primrose click here. To read an article in the San Mateo Daily Journal about CALL, click here. To make a donation, click here.

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Christmas Memories


It's Sunday night and I'm already reminiscing about Christmas Day. What memories did we make, what photos will represent this day?



So, a few memories of Christmas 2009. Time to start packing up the ornaments and decorations now. Put the photos in the scrapbook. Look forward to 2010.

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Christmas Eve Morning



The table is set for tomorrow's Christmas Dinner. There will be 14 of us this year and trying to fit everyone was a challenge. I decided to forego the Christmas plates and use my transferware instead, varying the green and red.








My Welsh cupboard looking very Christmasy with the Mason's Vista, majolica and Paperwhites

The morning light is so beautiful that I decided a take a few more pictures around the house. My sunroom with the view of the redwood outside.


Pinecone urn in the entry. I'm hoping the poinsettias last one more day!

The Christmas tree in the entry.

The mini Christmas tree on the family room credenza decorated with family photographs.

In the living room, behind the sofa is this victorian urn, inherited from my mother-in-law, filled with paperwhites.

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and all the best for a healthy, happy 2010.

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