A Christmas Weekend at the Cabin

It's beginning to look a lot like....April?  We spent last weekend at our family's cabin in the mountains and the weather was balmy and not at all winter-like.  If there is anything this year has taught me, it is not to get upset about things outside of my control.  So we went with it and enjoyed the spring-like weather.  But that didn't stop us from adding a few holiday touches to the house.

The warm weather made walking around the property to find a Christmas tree very pleasant.  We found one we liked and we (meaning Billy) dragged it back to the house.

Then, Billy trimmed it up.  It is hard to find a fuller tree that is growing in such a natural place so trimming is key.  We kept the middle, fullest part of the tree and chopped off the top and bottom.  Our oldest son had to stay home in NJ this weekend because he is busy selling Christmas trees for a local farm.  

After spending so much time on our home tour at home, and then decorating my mom's house as well, you would think we would be Christmas decor-ed out, but we really enjoyed decorating here most.  I think we spent about $10 total and it felt good to use such simple and natural decorations.

As much as we would love to wake up here in Christmas morning, we stay in NJ for a few reasons. One, we really enjoy our Christmas mornings at home, where we have the same traditions year after year.  Also, we like to spend time with extended family on Christmas Eve.  Oh yeah, and there is Billy's crazy work schedule as a police officer to consider.  He is working Christmas Day this year but he is off Christmas Eve. After 22+ years of living with his working holidays, I just pray he makes it home safe.

I mentioned that we spent under $10.  We used a spool of ribbon from HomeGoods that was $5.  The Shiny Brite ornaments were a $1 garage sale find.   My youngest boy and I made the owl ornaments from a kit from PaperSource.  Our only other ornaments are pine cones we found around the house. Everything else was stuff we already had.

Have you gotten into the latest trend of adult coloring books?  I am new to it and find it so relaxing. The Premier Prismacolor Colored Pencils are my favorites to color with so far.  I am hoping Santa brings me a larger assortment of colors :)

The fireplace in the dining area isn't the prettiest, but it does keep the house toasty warm when if the colder weather arrives.

And when we were done decorating, we went for a walk to enjoy the gorgeous weather.  It always feels so great to slow down and enjoy time with family at this busy time of year.  This was our first trip up without Forrest so it was a pretty emotional weekend for us as well.  Oh, how we miss our Forrest.

Keeper was confused as to why we wouldn't let her go swimming.  It really felt more like spring.

I hope you enjoyed a peak at our favorite place and that you are enjoying the holiday season!!  Just a few more sleeps until the big day...