All Ready! !

Of course I am totally ready for the sale this Friday. Well, actually I have a few more things to do. Oh alright, I have a thousand things to do and I'm not at all ready... Just thought I would see how it felt to say that, a couple of days in advance, I knew no one would believe me anyway.

I love Christmas balls, naturally I love the pastel ones best, but they all are just pretty fun! I totally love, love, love the old ones with glitter or "diamonds" or other jewels.

When I have time, which doesn't look promising for this week, I like to renew the old gross ones. Here is the way I do it for those of you that don't already know. This idea was in one of Rachel Ashwell's books, I don't remember which one, but I have done this lots of times and it is a great way to use up glass ornaments that would otherwise be useless.

Make a sink full of HOT water with dishwasher detergent in it. Take an old glass ornament (this doesn't work with plastic balls) holding it by the metal top and carefully without getting water inside the ornament, dip it in the hot soapy water. Swish it around and the paint will peel right off. Sometimes you have to rub a little... What you get is a great looking, silver ball that looks like a mercury ball. Certainly it is best to use old ones, because they turn out better. The tops are small and they are just "old" and therefore look old, "go figure". But if you have a bunch of random colored newer ornaments, and would like them to be silver... It goes without saying that we would all want perfectly co-ordinated ornaments on our trees... no random colors thrown in to upset the natural beauty...

Are you wondering if I let my kids decorate the tree? Well of course I did, when they were very little I would let them decorate the tree with the ornaments that I set out, and then I would put them where I wanted them after they went to bed. Why do you suppose now that they are grown they don't want to help?? Sam still "helps," it probably won't be long before he waits for me to go to bed so he can put them where he wanted them...