I think this is likely a style from the very late 1920s or early 1930. I thought it would be fun to share various rooms throughout the house, but I have to say that honestly dining rooms are pretty much classic, aren't they? I would think the hutch was newish to the era but the buffet at the back is common enough and seen from the 1800's onward.
The Duncan Phyfe style table and chairs shown here were very popular around this period and many reproductions appeared. I saw this style often in older family homes during my childhood. The buffet in the room is likely a holdover from Victorian days and probably was a family piece. But that China hutch? 20th century. The secretary to the left here might well be another antique, older than the buffet. This room is a true mixture of modern and antique and yet manages to be harmonious.
I like the room sized rug. We bought a rug that just fits our table and chairs, but I really prefer a room-sized rug for a dining space. I wish my own rug was as large. I also like that they've hung curtains in the doorway. This no doubt was done to cut down on drafts. Notice that the curtain is not the same as the drapes which are short and just touch the windowsill, but again they are harmonious in color to the drapes.
I like that the decoration of the room is kept quiet and simple. No pictures on the wall. The patterns are limited to the drapes, the China in the cabinet and the rug. Otherwise, the room has a quiet serenity that I think is just lovely.
Music in the background as I type this is Jake Westbrook's Vintage Christmas playlist. I listened to his Winter Playlist on Tuesday while John was having lunch with his partner and Caleb enjoyed that as much as I did. Give both playlists a listen to set the mood. As I looked up links, I discovered he has a Volume II and Volume III Christmas music, as well. Listen to all the Christmas music!
You can expect a Week 2 post for Advent this week, as well...and with any luck a Coffee Chat but for goodness' sake don't hold me to that last one.
Work:
Remember 'December Goals' which started my paragraph for work last week? No, I didn't make any. I completely and totally forgot that it was December! So, this week I need to plan out December because it's got a lot of things going on already and there are other plans to be made for the rest of the month that we've not even discussed as a couple or family.
Nor did I start wrapping Christmas gifts. To be fair, I'd planned to do so on Friday for sure, but then I picked up my tape dispenser and there was a one-inch strip of tape and no more. I don't know if I have more on hand or not. I think I might, but I'll have to remember where I put it. Honestly, we've lost quite a few things lately and no clue where any of them are, so definitely will be a week of 'Seek and Find'.
I might just refer you all to last week's post, period. I still need to do the last of the Christmas shopping and pronto. I've just realized that it's exactly two weeks until our family Christmas!
Continue with Christmas decorating. One wreath on one door and one undecorated tree does not Christmas decor make. I have all these sweet visions of things I might do and haven't shopped for a single thing that might make it happen. So, I'm going to try and work with what I have which is plenty even if it doesn't resemble my visions, lol.
I should have Caleb. This week I think I will have him all five days of the week. That seems to always be open to what else is happening. His dad might come visit, or Katie have a day off, etc.
Plant the pansies I picked up on Friday.
Get the freshly rooted stems in my kitchen window into soil. I have Bee Balm, tomato and coleus rooted.
If I have any time at all, I'll see if I can get back to the back porch cleaning. I'm going to work smart if I do. I'm just going to ask John to take out the pressure washer. Foolish of me not to have asked for it on Friday. I don't want to say I'm tired all the time, but I am tired and I work a lot harder than I have to. I could find ways to work less strenuous and just maybe finish up a project or have time leftover to manage something else.
Kitchen:
Snickerdoodles. I've had snickerdoodle cookies on my mind for a week or more now. I haven't made them in years, and I want some. When I bought flour on Friday afternoon, I was much amused that the only bag of store brand flour I picked up had a recipe on the back for Snickerdoodles. It's meant to be! Aside from Snickerdoodles, I need to get my cookie making mojo on for family Christmas. I can prep doughs ahead and it will be a tremendous help. I've learned the art of having cookie dough at the ready and when I have an extra 20 minutes or so I can at least make one tray of cookies in odd moments.
I need to make out my grocery shopping list. I need to make out my goals list and look ahead at my calendar to be sure I buy what I require. This is my big once a month stock up shopping, not a weekly sales shop.
I need to make my menu for Christmas family day in two weeks and coordinate what everyone is bringing. I'll buy ahead what I can right away as part of my monthly amount.
Menus:
In no particular order, though we had the beef stew on Friday night and will have the Turkey Tetrazzini Lasagna for supper tonight.
Turkey Tetrazzini, Green Salad, Garlic bread
Tortilla Towers, Pineapple Salad I don't know just where Mama got this recipe, but she made it pretty much from my elementary school days onwards. It is simple but so tasty. It starts with homemade chili and back in our most stringent budget days I'd serve the chili (with rice to stretch it further) one day and then use the leftovers to make Tortilla Towers.
Mama didn't use tortillas. She made thin cornmeal pancakes and I think that's what makes the dish. I don't suppose if she'd wanted to she could have found corn tortillas back in that era. We didn't have nearly the choices for international foods we have now. You make the thin cornmeal pancakes and then you layer into a casserole a cornmeal pancake, chili, cheese and keep repeating until the whole 'towers'. Mama always used a really deep casserole for hers and the last pancake or two would come up over the top.
I haven't made this in ages.... I have leftover chili in the freezer and all the other necessary ingredients.
Beef Stew, Cornbread, Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage Homemade Bread John asked specifically for this meal. He was very careful to say he wanted "potatoes and onions" in his beef stew. I personally enjoy carrots and a carrot found its way into the stew. I had other plans for the menu, but we'd just finished Shabat, and a fresh loaf of bread made this morning was on the table. I decided to slice that loaf even though we had last week's loaf in the fridge.
That simple little thing made me stop and think. The bread was delicious, and I enjoyed it a great deal. I've been making our bread each now for months, perhaps even a year. And I NEVER eat it when it's fresh! I told John it's silly of me, but it's always when the bread is two or three days old that I finally get around to eating it. Definitely a bad habit and one I mean to break starting now.
I promise all my menu selections this week will not be accompanied by a lengthy paragraph.
Gramma's Fried Chicken, Mac n Cheese, Potato salad, ?? Maybe I'll make a green side of some sort. I'll see how crazy Sunday lunch rush turns out to be. None of us are fussy beings and it won't be our only meal of the day.
Salisbury Steaks with Mushroom Sauce, Mashed Potatoes, Steamed Broccoli
Chicken Parmesan, Spaghetti, Salad, Garlic Bread Croutons
Baked Chicken and Dumplings, Green Peas, Peach Salad
Personal and Leisure:
I have a stack of Christmas related books. I sometimes just read a chapter or two of a book that I recall is related to Christmas. Like the opening chapter of Little Women. I love that homey Christmas chapter and the sweetness of it swells my heart. I've those things to pick up and read all through the season and I mean to do so.
I have never pulled out the vintage magazines for December yet. At the moment I'm undecided if I shall do so. I should, if only to get the January issues back to the top of my pile.
And last, Katie brought me the first two Harry Potter books. I want to start the first one so I can return her books as soon as possible to her.
I'd like to set up a few outfits for December. I haven't even shared my latest Stitch Fix items. It would be nice to get a chance to set them up as outfits, too.
I've been incredibly bad about moisturizing and washing my face of late. The dry air is playing havoc and I've had three breakouts in the past two weeks. If I wash and moisturize my face and decolletage I don't have this issue. If I have to make a checklist to ensure that I do this twice daily, then I'll do so.
Also, I have become caught in 'new mom' sort of syndrome. I often miss getting my hair brushed and don't put on makeup. Or tweeze my brows routinely. I'm telling you, I've been letting myself go. I'm over it. I can take better care of me and that in turn tends to make me feel better. It's worth the added five or ten minutes each morning. With the added bonus that in wearing makeup, I will absolutely wash my face twice a day.
6 comments:
It's funny that you should mention the lack of international foods years ago. We were raised in a southern California that has always had a heavy Mexican influence. Even back in the 60s there was Mexican food to be had everywhere, both fast food and good restaurants. When my sister finished college she eventually moved to New York City and she sorely missed Mexican food. At some point in the late 70s or early 80s I was visiting her and she asked me to try and whip up some tacos or burritos. Of course I needed tortillas and I set out to hit all the local grocery stores to find some. Not only did nobody have any but they didn't even know what I was talking about.
Of course that has all changed now, but we still laugh about it.
Anne, I was thinking the very same thing. I grew up in Southern California in the 60s and my mom made tacos from corn tortillas about once a week. I was probably in my 30s, living in Oklahoma, before I realized there was such a thing as boxed "taco shells". I've never bought them. I fry corn tortillas for tacos almost every Tuesday. Definitely a family favorite.
I feel a sort of constant fatigue and recently remembered my grandmother saying that after her mid 60s she never did feel a day wihtout fatigue. I hope she was wrong but so far I am experiencing the same. Always, always tired.
The dining room is very pretty. I agree about the room size rug. The room is very restful with minimal distractions. I would be happy if our dining room table wasn't always stacked with stuff.
Your Salisbury steak meal sounds good. I use cube steak and it is always a good, comforting meal. Is your pineapple salad the one with cheese in it? My recipe seems to have vanished and the Urban Farmer's mother gave me hers but it wasn't the same. Snickerdoodles were always a favorite around here and years ago I kept the no bake cookies on hand.
The Urban Farmer and I were talking at lunch today about the introduction of Mexican food in our area. When I was a sophomore in high school, our Spanish teacher took us to a Mexican restaurant. This was 1962 and Indianapolis did not have a large Hispanic community. Now we have Ethiopian restaurants and all sorts of other ethnic eateries.
Good morning,
I wanted to ask how Bess and Sam are doing?
Anne and Deanna, for small town Georgia, our idea of Chinese was Chun King from the grocery (there was a sweet and sour pork boxed seasoning mix that was so good!), and for Italian was Chef Boyardee with pizza kits. Mama did a lot of making food from scratch. I don't recall any Mexican meals at all, except jarred tamales which Daddy liked. I don't recall ever seeing international foods at all in our markets until I was grown. No Hispanic restaurants or such. Now we routinely have Mexican, Chinese, Greek, Cuban, Thai, Korean, Indian available. If anything is in short supply it's Italian beyond Olive Garden.
Mable, I think I am fighting something off. I have a swollen lymph node under my right jaw. I've been using the Warrior blend I have and it's helped a lot.
Donna, I use hamburger but flour and season like cubed steak and then brown and make my gravy. Yes, that's the pineapple salad, just pineapple rings on a lettuce leaf, a bit of mayo and cheese and a cherry to top if I'm feeling fancy.
Angela, thank you for asking. Bess is still recovering. She and Samuel are doing well enough and will in time be over this little season.
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