WE'VE BEGUN THE SKID INTO HOLIDAY SEASON

The skid into Holiday Season seems all downhill, and it gains momentum as time passes. Why is it that the hot summer months seem so long but come Fall, it's two or three weeks, and then we're starting to think about winter? Then Thanksgiving and Christmas hit us head-on.

I did find some pumpkins and decorative gourds early this Fall and though I apparently waited too long before searching for some colorful mums for my porch, I was able to find some large pumpkins for either side of the front door. I'm happy with those. If not for expecting Thanksgiving company, I wouldn't have bothered with the extra pumpkins, but I want the porch to look Fall-ish and the nursery manager offered a deal I couldn't refuse. She said, "2 for $5" and the pumpkins came home with me.

Fall is my favorite season, with winter a close second. As is often my dilemma, I've been pondering whether to host a home show or not. I missed my self-imposed deadline for a Fall show, but it wasn't all due to procrastination. October was a busy month. I was invited to Michigan for my niece's baby shower which was held in the early part of the month. Since it's a 5-hour drive one-way, my daughter, granddaughter, and I traveled there, visited with extended family, and spent one night. It was well worth the travel time and good to see relatives and share in the excitement of the expected little one. Once home, I used the next few days catching up with laundry and sleep. I had little energy or incentive to work on a home show, especially since two days after the baby shower, I became sick and whatever "bug" I had, lasted for over two weeks. So....

The opportunity for a Fall show passed right by me, but I recently decided I could certainly host a holiday home show the first weekend in December. Though I'd rather have scheduled it earlier, Thanksgiving is upon us and I will have a houseful of company and some overnighters. That's all well and good, but it does limit the time I can spend getting ready for a show when I have a house to spruce up, clean linens to prepare, and a menu to plan and execute.

Preparing for a holiday home show shouldn't be overwhelming. I will need to finish arranging my cabin displays, put up a few decorations and white lights, and make sure my handcrafted and vintage items are priced and displayed. Those things are fun to do. A few days prior to the show, I'll make a few cookies and some peanut butter fudge for visitors to sample, but other than that, it shouldn't take too much extra planning. I have enough to offer for sale and it's not as if I haven't hosted shows before. It's rather that I procrastinate and talk myself out of doing them. I'm really very tired of changing my mind, so I'm doing it!  It will be held one day - Saturday, December 3rd - and after that, I'll concentrate on decorating the inside of my house.

CHRISTMAS IN THE CABIN at LIBERTY HOMESTEAD                                            
8593 Hemple Rd. - Germantown, Ohio 45327
Saturday, December 3, 2016 - 10am-5pm

Handcrafted Holiday Decorations and Gifts - Goose Creek Jar Candles (Made in the USA), 

Vintage Tin Items, Cookie Cutters, Old Rolling Pins, Baskets, Cookbooks, and other Kitchen Accessories

If I have time to make a few more items, I will do that, but if I don't make another thing, I'll still have more than enough to display. My hope is to sell what's already made - or a good portion of it - then to begin again in January to create handmade items using fabrics and patterns I have on hand. Every time I think of retiring from sewing and shows, I relent. I know I still want to do this.  

I've posted my holiday day home show date to for intention's sake. Sometimes I really have to set a deadline so I will follow through. I'd rather impose a deadline than to whine later about not taking the opportunity available to me. So, here goes.....