Christmas Round Deux ...

The Hubs and I traveled upstate this past weekend to enjoy one last Christmas celebration with my family. The weather was unseasonably warm on Saturday and we all agreed that this year did not feel particularly that festive due to the temperatures.

Despite all that, here is a pic (albeit fuzzy pic) of my parents tree and my childhood stocking:


* Don't be jealous.... I know this stocking pretty much rocks! My Grandmother made this for me as a baby and it is really standing the test of time.

We didn't get to properly exchange our gifts until Sunday morning (sadly without my Sister as she was at work) due to a little get together for my Aunts and Uncles that my parents hosted on Saturday evening, but it was worth the wait! Here are a couple noteworthy prezzies....

* I have been dying to try this baby out for months now... I'm really hoping it will do wonders for my dull, wintry skin (Thanks Mom).

Also, some fun colored knives for our UpstateHaven since we were lacking any sort of proper cutlery (butter knives do NOT count):



On Saturday my Mom prepared some awesome food for the family get together, such as meatballs with fresh Italian bread for open-faced sandwiches.... enchiladas... bruschetta and I whipped up a salad for some added nutrition. Magnus and I also treated everyone to some classic Swedish Glogg ...


*Pre-warming for consumption.

Emma even came out at one point to join in all the Holiday festivities ...


* This is no easy feat for Emma to just hang out on the couch like this. My parents have 2 dogs, one of which is a Basenji who wants nothing more than to play with our cat Emma. I'm sure you can imagine all the noises that ensue once they make eye contact in a situation like this haha

In between all the family gatherings, we had some time to go to our UpstateHaven and check out some painting that has been underway thanks to my uncle David. He put up a new sconce we purchased for the upstairs hallway and has primed one of the bedrooms upstairs as well as finished the other one. Things are looking fantastic up there so far! Soon it is time to start renovating both bathrooms...
Here are a few pics of the upstairs:


* Back bedroom upstairs


* Finished bookshelves with new facing and some freshening up!


* New sconce from Pottery Barn 

We also put to good use some new iittala candle holders from the motherland and festive candles:




* There is also a new candy dish in the center from iittala. This brand consistently has fun items for the house to liven things up!
In addition to the new candle holders, we desperately needed a new throw rug in front of the kitchen sink. I think this jute runner really does the trick!

So there you have it! Those are the changes that have been occurring at UpstateHaven with much more to come in the near future. We will be sure to keep everyone posted :)

2 comments:

style fare said...

Haha, Emma's expressions always crack me UP! Great gifts, Jin! You'll have to tell me how effective the Clarisonic is!

And I'm OBSESSED with your Christmas stocking - that is a total jewel right there!! xoxo

Jinnie and Magnus said...

I will definitely keep you updated on the Clarisonic... so far I'm loving it! xo