Yikes! Christmas is 14 days away and I’m down to the wire with my shopping and party planning. The good news is that we spend Christmas day relaxing. We celebrate family time at Thanksgiving by hosting all the extended family in our home and after that roller coaster ride, I’m done…as in stick a fork in me! Everyone celebrates Christmas with their immediate family so that leaves the three of us lounging around in our P’J’s and grazing on a simple meal, all day. I have a little more shopping to do but nothing a few hours can’t handle. Plus, I work so much better under the gun. Remember, I mentioned I love everything gingerbread?

That’s right! Welcome to my gingerbread kitchen. I’ve been collecting gingerbread for thirty years. My family and friends have helped me along the way. The gingerbread houses were decorated by my nieces, nephews and their parents. We had so much fun creating memories of our wonderful Thanksgiving time together.

The table runner on my middle island is three yards of polka dot fabric I found at Hobby Lobby. No sewing here. I folded the edges and pressed them down instead of pressing a pedal on a sewing machine. I leave that crazy to my Sissy.
I placed the gingerbread houses, my family decorated on the fabric. During the holidays, I like to set out cookies, candy, fruit and nuts to snack on. The plaid plates were a gift from my dear friend, Marilyn.
I lined my counter top with a white tablecloth, then placed my collection of gingerbread boys, girls, trains, and whatnots, on the cloth to create a village. I sprinkled some faux snow over the village. This stuff is very unruly so be careful not to use too much or you will be sweeping up plastic fluff for days.
My sweet Sissy made this tea towel with the adorable candy canes.
Here is another look at my beverage station. This section is getting a lot of traffic and so is the snack island. Mmmm… I better get rid of these snacks or we both will be making New Year’s resolutions we won’t be able to keep.
I hope you have a fabulous weekend and meet me back here next week for the Merry and Bright Holiday Home Tour finale. If you are playing catch up, be sure to check out part 1 and part 2. There are eight fabulous team of ladies participating in the tour. Be sure to check out their Merry and Bright. Links are located at the end of each post.