Merry Christmas & Into The New Year 2024

Here we are, it's the big day. Happy Christmas, friends!

The Christmas tunes are playing today while the mister is working on the Christmas dinner. My job today is to set the table, sort out the bevie station, clean the floors before folks get here... all the other little bits.

The sauna will stay on for most of the day, as folks start to trickle over for this evening's Christmas Eve celebrations. It all happens today, from the feasting to the gifting... and tomorrow we rest.

The house is ready for the guests to arrive. The gifts are all wrapped and under the tree... Okay, it is a tiny pencil tree, so they're actually nestled all around the tree.

This was a bit of a fluke, but check out how the velvet ribbons on the tree match the new blue velvet drapes in the living and dining room. So stoked, these velvet curtains! They have many years in the making.

Many Europeans change out their curtains for Christmas .... This is my aunt's house, in northern Finland.

I am not quite that dedicated to the holidays, but the home feels cosy and nice.

This table will soon be extended to it's fullest, but will still be a bit of a squeeze to fit everyone in as we all gather round the table.

The Christmas decor was kept simple everywhere. In this room, a poinsettia in an old crock, boughs from our spruce tree out back, and a little bit of JOY.

Fresh roses (or tulips) are a must. Definitely for the holidays, but also any other time of year.

Means more roses for drying later ; )

I feel like this year, everything has been so lovely, wonderful, and just right. Christmas gatherings, sharing of laughter with friends and neighbours, hubs at home to share in the pre-holiday celebrations. This has never happened before!

If you have never tried adding an oil to your water, you really should. I love the old fashioned 'sauna tar' most as it is nostalgic, but this eucalyptus oil is so lovely.

I am looking forward to the good food and family tonight, the sauna, the faces of my sweet grandies, niblings, and kids, as they open their gifts.

Tomorrow will be a day of leisure, of eating leftovers and Turtles chocolates, while reading a good book.

On Boxing Day the tree and holidays are put away, and we start on a couple weeks of rest... or whatever. Things will be crazy around here by mid-January again so will be a good time to recoup our thoughts, and energies.

During this quiet time before the craziness begins again, I'll be planning, prepping, working on my seed planning and orders, might do a bit of sewing, painting, and puttering. I'm also pondering doing a 4 month on-line course (still brewing on the idea). Wish it was a bit shorter timewise...

On the blog, I'll be sharing my ideas for the new garden year of 2024... There is a pizza/bread oven in the plans (so excited), some new pollinator beds, a variegated hedgerow, the wee shop reveal (yay!) and the new workshops. Lots to come about gardens and growing, of course!

I am so looking forward to this spring in the yard and garden already. Super excited that the workshop will be done, so we can start learning, growing, and doing! If you have any topics you'd like me to cover, let me know by email or in the comments below. You all know that I love everything about 'garden talk'!

I'll also (finally) be sharing all the details of the kitchen and bathroom renovations (I know some of you have been asking and waiting for a long while already - so sorry!), the new seed and growing plans. We'll be back to gardening before we know it....and hey, the days are already about a minute longer already ; )

Thank you all so much for following, for your questions and comments, for sharing your ideas, gardens, successes, (some of your flops, too), and thoughts with me : )

Enjoy your holidays, chat with you again very soon.

Wishing you all a very, very, very Merry Christmas ~ Tanja

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