Tag Archives: Christmas

Patience rewarded

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corelle

From a practical point of view, Corelle ware is great – nearly unbreakable. It will outlast the popularity of its pattern by decades! The majority of the Woodland pattern set we purchased 34 years ago served through every meal and holiday dinner, endured two children and a million trips through the dishwasher. It was still in great shape, but over time, I came to hate the sight of the brown leaves that circled every plate, bowl and cup.

It was time (way past time according to my kids) to replace the dishes. I looked at purchasing china and fell in love with the White Palace pattern by Noritake. However, I was blown away by the price and couldn’t justify the expense. China’s not really practical for every day, anyway, right?

corelle_whtInstead I chose to replace the old Corelle with new Corelle (guess I’m not very adventurous). Knowing this stuff will probably survive any natural disaster, I opted for the Enhancements pattern, which is basic white with a little swirl detail. I figured basic white wouldn’t become dated over time.

I found a loving home for the old Corelle and happily began using the new Corelle. I was just fine using the new dishes day in and day out, but when special occasions rolled around, I still secretly wished for the Noritake White Palace china to grace my table.

allthetrimmingsI found contentment in my growing collection of Christmas china I found at thrift stores. I was hoping to find Noritake White Palace china, but in all my exploration, I didn’t find a single piece. Even on eBay the price for the china was more than I was willing to spend. It’s important to note that the husband would have no problem with me purchasing china, even at retail prices. I was the one who was unwilling to pay that amount for something we’d only use a few times a year. So, I sort of gave up on the idea except for the occasional eBay search.

A week after Christmas I was doing a little eBay shopping and decided to do another search for Noritake White Palace china. What the heck, right? To my surprise, a 53-piece set including nine five-piece place settings was available for about one third the price of retail! Some pieces were described as gently used, however some pieces were new with price tags attached.  Oh, happy day!

noritakeI watched the item for a few days. No one bid. I waited until the auction had about 12 hours left then placed my bid at the starting price. I wanted the china, but I already decided that I wouldn’t increase my bid if someone bid higher. I held my breath (figuratively) and when the auction was over, the china was mine!

It arrived within a week and it is beautiful! I’m glad I exercised a little patience and waited for a price that allows me to enjoy using it even more.  And that my friends, is *finesse!

*finesse (skill, flair, grace elegance, poise, assurance)

Sharing memories

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A rare photo of my dad with his dad

The last of my dad’s siblings passed away recently. Aunt Bunny and I weren’t particularly close, so I had no idea how many family photos and memorabilia she possessed. Possibly because she outlived her siblings, many cousins and two of her three children, she became the logical repository for such family treasures.

Her son Mark and his wife Alice encouraged family to make copies before they took the photos back to their home in another state. My cousin and I scanned photos and genealogy information for several hours, but didn’t quite finish before Mark and Alice were scheduled to hit the road. I’ve continued scanning off and on for several weeks and have just a few more photos left to scan. Whew!

My dad’s mother with some of his older siblings (abt. 1924)

I’m grateful that my aunt kept the photos and documents in good shape, but there are two things she could have done to make these treasures more valuable for the next generation.

Labeling: Most of the photos have some sort of writing on the back, however, some of the writing was faded or illegible. Most of the information was first names only, which isn’t very helpful if you’re trying to connect them with a certain family. Dates and locations would also have been great information.

Share: As the oldest member of the family, it would have been very helpful if Aunt Bunny had shared the photos and documents before dementia faded her memory. It would have been so interesting to hear the stories that accompanied the photos. We also could have been enjoying family history and posting information to ancestry.com instead of it being stored away in boxes.

My dad’s sister Goldie with his soldier brothers Russell and Orville. (abt. 1943)

I plan to work with my mother (who is the oldest of her siblings and the oldest of the remaining cousins on both her mother and father’s side of the family) to not only label photos with names, dates and locations, but include relationships. We need to scan photos and documents for other family members to enjoy now.

What history and memories do you have stored in boxes? Sharing them would make an excellent Christmas present!

Vacation souvenirs – a love/hate relationship

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I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; I LOVE to travel. I love exploring new places, spending time with friends and family who live far away, and just plain getting away from the ordinary day-to-day stuff. I like remembering the places we’ve been with souvenirs, but as much as I love souvenirs, I also hate them.

My first recollection of purchasing souvenirs was when we went on a family vacation to Yellowstone National Park (one of my favorite places on earth!). I was 8 years old and with the help of my mother, picked up a jewelry box, coin purse and pennant all emblazoned with the image of Old Faithful. That vacation started a long tradition of purchasing souvenirs that now clutter my house. And it’s not just souvenirs I’ve purchased, but souvenirs my parents and grandparents brought back from their travels.

When I finally realized this needed to stop, I migrated to purchasing and requesting T-shirts. This is a better solution than storing or dusting less practical souvenirs, but they eventually wear out so the entire purpose of a souvenir is lost.

The perfect solution appeared as I was perusing the gift shop at Mt. Rushmore and came across a Christmas ornament depicting the famous monument. It hit me that Christmas ornaments are the perfect souvenir! You take them out once a year, relive fond memories as you place them on the tree and then store them away neatly with the other ornaments a few weeks later. Perfect!

Since that epiphany, I’ve purchased ornaments on our trips to Disneyland, Seattle, Seaside, the Oregon Caves, the Grand Canyon and most recently Cape Disappointment. They don’t take up much space in the suitcase, which is a plus, and they don’t clutter my house. They are the perfect souvenir and sparkling reminders of the fun places we’ve enjoyed visiting.

My souvenir *finesse level: 
Novice     Advanced beginner     Competent        Proficient        Expert             

What’s your souvenir finesse level?

*finesse (skill, flair, grace elegance, poise, assurance)

 

 

A “collector” chooses organization

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I recently wrote about trying to help my mother begin the overwhelming task of becoming organized. I readily admit to not being organized by nature (wonder where I get that?), but I have picked up some skills that help me achieve an efficient, calm, organized lifestyle. I thought if mom took an organizational class, her eyes would be opened to a whole new world where there’s “a place for everything and everything is in its place.” Oh, if it had only been that easy.

Mom’s a “fly by the seat of your pants” kind of gal. She’s always ready for fun and has the ability to make people feel comfortable. If someone needs her, she drops everything and is there for them. It’s easy to see why she has a LOT of friends. And her friends give her gifts, which she proudly displays. As I mentioned in the previous post, her collection of stuff flows throughout her lovely 3-bedroom, 2-bath home in a seemingly endless display of visual clutter.

Evil Clutter Fairy: "Three weeks after throwing something away you'll need it again."

We attended the organizational class in the summer and she resisted all requests to begin the process of elimination – until a week before Christmas. Mom wanted to host Christmas dinner at her house and understands I have a hard time relaxing while surrounded by clutter. I was fine with her hosting, and she reluctantly accepted my offer to help her get her kitchen and family room organized and festive.

I won’t say it wasn’t challenging, and at times it was even painful, but the process was started. We continued to go through her home one day a week through Feb. We’ve made a lot of progress, but we’ve got a long way to go. I’ll keep you updated!

My organization finesse level: 
Novice     Advanced beginner     Competent        Proficient        Expert

What’s your organization finesse level?

If you need some coaching, contact connie@anewbeginningorganizing.com – www.anewbeginningorganizing.com