Posts Tagged ‘tabletop decor’
Somewhere Else
This time of year when we have a beautiful day now and then, even if we do not live in one of the warm states,we can dream of being in or taking a vacation to one of the warm spots on our planet. Maybe an item in your house, like a clock
or a figurine or a picture, will make you think of that warm place and make you dream of going there. We have lived in warm places, like Texas, and cold places, like Alaska. They both have their wonderful places and times. Each member of the family has their favorite spot in those places and sometimes we dream of taking a vacation there and sometimes we actually get to do it.
Anyway, right now we are where we are and have what we have. We may curl up on the couch with a nice cup of coffee or hot chocolate and look at that item we bought in the place we would like to be again. We can dream even when we can’t travel.
Think Spring
Today does not seem like spring. However, the calender says we are several days into the season. We just need to feel like it is spring and it will be. Well, lets decide how to do that magical feat. Maybe we can concentrate on something and it will help.
Lately I have been admiring a certain vase. 
It looks like all the colors of the rainbow wrapped around a form. It is beautiful even without flowers. With some beautiful artificial flowers, it might help make the feeling of spring just leap into our heads. Maybe we can create the feeling of the season in our own living rooms, then it will spread throughout the house. When we step outside spring will be inside of us, even if the season is not apparent in our yards.
Beautiful Light
The sun has been there all along, but we keep just seeing clouds and haze. Winter is upon us and this year seems to be a time of dreaming about spring and the beautiful sunlight it brings. The wind is blowing and the plants are leaning toward the south because of the north wind. We love spring and we love to see a snow in winter, but this year the snow has been here deeply and long. People who live where there is no snow would love to enjoy some of this we have had. The people who have snow every year are all probably ready to see it leave as are we who usually have at least one big snow and then it melts and we have rain and a few flurries of snow.
When we can’t have much sunlight or we have it and it is still cold outside, we can come inside and enjoy our beautiful lamps. We like to light the candle lamps and enjoy the scent of the candles we have placed there. We enjoy now more than ever the beautiful lights we have placed around the house. We can’t change the weather, but we can turn on the light that we like inside the home. Just enjoy it and look forward to spring. What a happy thought!
Cruising
Cruises are fun. At least the one I went on was! It just made me decide that all cruises must be fun because we have some friends that go on lots of them and they never come back saying it was a bore. Anyway, it is a little different than being out on a lake in a fishing boat which I have done many times.
All of this brings us back to the good old days and I mean old days. The days of the clipper ships. Those ships are the ones that we see in bottles and as figurines. Those are in the stories and movies of pirates. They are the stuff of Long John Silver and Robinson Crusoe. I probably would not have enjoyed a cruise on one of those ships. However, since I am not getting ready to go on a cruise, nor do I ever expect to go again, I must admit that sometimes I enjoy the movies of those old days and have even read a book or two about them. Now I will just stare at my figurines, etc. and remember - the real and the stories.
Do You Like to Read?
It seems there is always a book around with a marker in it. A person in the family is reading it. Someone may have recommended the book or it just may have had an interesting title or we may have seen it advertised on TV. Anyway, it makes us appreciate the teachers who had a hand in teaching us to read. Sometimes everyone is reading a different book and there those books are with their cute or funny or plain bookmarks just waiting until we have time to pick them up and curl up on the sofa or somewhere quiet for a while.
One of the other things that goes with reading the books are the bookend
s we have. After all these years, we have bookends that fit best in the living room, some that are in a bedroom and some that are in the family room. It is fun to see the different ones we have collected over the years. Sometimes we just can’t part with a pair of bookends when a new set arrives and we just put them away for a while. Maybe someday we will get them all out and put the unused ones in a display case that will be just as special as the shelves with the used bookends!
Falling Asleep
Does a waterfall put you to sleep? In our camping days we were always glad to be where we could hear a waterfall. It really can put you to sleep. Our grandson has a tabletop water fountain in his room that makes a splashing sound. He goes to sleep by that sound. Right now, however, he is at college without the water fountain. I guess he gets so tired he just falls asleep. Anyway, a water fountain can make an enjoyable sound that many people like to hear.
Water fountains are also an enjoyable item to use to decorate indoors or out. If you have an indoor fountain, you can turn it on when you want and enjoy the sight and sound. Outdoor fountains can also be on or off. If you have one, enjoy it. If not, maybe you will want to consider it. Just put in the water, plug it in, turn it on and lay back. Just be sure to refrain from doing this just before it is time to go to work!
A Teaching Tool
Being a former teacher and grandmother, it is only natural to think of things as ways to teach. Tiny tots can learn to pick up toys. Children a little older can learn to fold washcloths and small towels. Older children can learn to vacuum and dust. Teenagers can learn to do laundry. Many things come to mind that children can learn just by living in their home and observing. It usually takes an incentive to learn to do things that are not fun in and of themselves. However, these things are necessary to a neat and tidy home.
Thinking of an incentive, brings to mind some wooden birdhouses
that we have had. One stays in the house and is used as a decoration from time to time. Another was built as a tool to help a teenager learn to use a hammer and saw. Wooden birdhouses can be both decorative and useful. Our decorative birdhouse has been home to at least two different birds. The house holds up better than those pretend birds. The outside birdhouse was actually used by some real birds. It is interesting to see them choose and use something you have put out for their comfort and safety. Additional learning was obtained by realizing that birds need food and you can help provide it by putting it on their “porch” while they are gone. It was also a learning tool that birds make messes and that they do not clean them up themselves. That can be done, but is not as much fun as putting out the food and watching the birds. Anyway, using daily life as a learning tool is something we need to do. Using wooden birdhouses that can go inside or outside is one way to do it.
Peace and Tranquility in an Office Setting
This week has been a hectic one at work to put it mildly. For starters, my youngest son is home sick with the flu, so my wife has been staying home to make sure he’s comfortable. When I finally leave for work in the morning, it’s a total crap shoot as to whether my car will start. Then, Wednesday, when I got to the office a few minutes late and tried to get started with my massive workload, I was confronted by the vice president of the company.
As it turned out, he had selected me to present the monthly earnings report to the board of directors. Not surprisingly, the meeting was only days away. That’s when I realized that I needed to take some time out just to stay sane. I retreated into my office and focused my attention on a tabletop water fountain I bought online. The soothing sound of running water is enough to relax me. After a few moments, I’m always ready to tackle whatever challenges might lie ahead.