SuzAnna's Antiques - Holiday Open House

SuzAnna's Antiques 2022

Many of you may recall my days at SuzAnna's Antiques. Memories are many and happy. The friends made there during the years when I shared a booth with Vanessa, and then my granddaughter Jasmin working there for several years, all remain close to my heart. I look around the cottage and see so many things purchased there. Yes, SuzAnna's is special.

Now located further away from Raleigh I don't get there as often, but the Holiday Open House is never missed. This year we headed north with Jasmin, met up with Vanessa and her daughter Luna who have moved back to North Carolina from California (so glad!), and we joined the crowd of shoppers for a lovely evening with shop owners, mother and daughter Susie and Jennie.  

Did I buy anything? The brass angel came home and will soon be hanging somewhere for the Christmas holidays!  Despite trying to downsize I couldn't leave without something to remind me of another special visit.

So, who is already starting holiday decorating?  Perhaps most of you, like me, don't do much until after Thanksgiving here in the USA. I have noticed in my neighborhood some lights are being strung outside and probably by next weekend lighted trees will appear in windows. Dusk creeps in early now. Woodsmoke lingers in the colder air. We readied the fireplace this week and stacked wood near the back door. The fire tools are aging but a new fire screen looks smart, and unrolling the hearth rug brought back memories, fortunately no cinder burns so it will last a while longer!  We'll light a fire on Thanksgiving Day when it will be quite cold and cloudy.

Best wishes to all who will be celebrating Thanksgiving this Thursday.  

Night light -

Many people are sad at the thought of the winter months ahead. They sigh. They moan. They complain. They wish for springtime, summer, for autumn to stay longer. In all honesty the latter would be fine with me, autumn truly is my favorite season, but the coming of winter fills my thoughts today. 

This morning was cold, our first day since last winter with the temperature hitting freezing right at dawn. At 7AM I opened the front door, walked down the driveway to pick up the paper, breathing in the chill and tasting it. Different.

Now the clocks have changed and the evenings draw in earlier, and I gather the feelings, the woodsmoke fragrance, sounds from rustling trees. Different.  Outside on the fig tree the hanging lanterns turn on at dusk. I'm thankful for modern battery operated candles - placing them in plastic baggies keeps them free from wet conditions. 

I light the candles placed around the house, on the kitchen island, dining room table, sideboard (above) and Welsh dresser. One or two in the living room brighten that area when I knit and watch television, read a book or flip through a magazine. 

The house is small, cozy in winter. Soon the hearth will glow as oak and hickory logs fill the empty hearth, illuminating the bricks and turning them rich and rust colored as the dancing flames shoot high and warm the room. There really is nothing better than a crackling wood fire in wintertime.

How do you stay cozy in winter? Do you embrace the changing weather here in the northern hemisphere? I do feel that as we age cold weather is more difficult to deal with however there are ways to stay snug and safe, especially at home.

A Walk in the Park -

 

Our neighborhood park and pond have been really scenic lately. . . . . . 

. . . . . . and even the garden has sprung back to life with more color in

dahlia blooms - after I cut the plants almost to the ground ready for

 winter - plus more roses and camellias.  

We are incredibly busy lately - or perhaps incredibly slow getting

 things done!! Bob is so busy daily raking and blowing the masses of falling

 leaves and acorns, the latter huge, all raining down and covering every

 surface. Mowing the grass continues as with the very warm

 temperatures it continues to grow non-stop. 

Daily doings just keep rearing their heads - some pleasant, others

 ugly - all requiring time. Changing the clocks. . . . . . and then getting

up at 5 AM on Tuesday to watch the spectacular lunar eclipse in our

dressing gowns and slippers from the garden. . . . . . seem to have us, 

well at least me, a bit groggy and unstable this week.

Despite the downs there of course plenty of ups and we feel

grateful that we can do what we do these days.

I see Holiday Open House signs and ads everywhere, and tomorrow

 evening we plan to head to a favorite location of so many years, 

SuzAnna's Antiques, at their always fabulous venue. Although they did

 move from Raleigh and we have a much longer drive, we can't miss

 it as there are many friends there to catch up with, and lots of holiday

 merchandise to view.  Just hope the coming heavy rains don't get here

 until Friday. Driving at night in heavy rain is no longer fun for us - know

 what I mean?

Are you ready to "deck the halls" yet?

I see some of you have already started.  I will need to get

 organized and and start pulling out the storage boxes soon!!