Christmas aftermath

The past 2 days have been quite busy reclaiming the house. A lot of cleaning, organizing, de-cluttering was on the menu with a side of shopping. The kitchen no longer looks like a candy/cookie factory. I also reorganized a few cabinets and rearranged the counter appliances. It makes sense to have the coffee close to the coffee machine and the mugs in the same area right ? OK there was a bit of OCD involved here. And then today I finally found the perfectly sized credenza for our tiny entrance hall. Even my hubby approved. Yay! I still plan on some repainting at some point. I love the shape and colors, not so much the floral design on it. I'm thinking olive branches...

The living rooms is mostly back to normal too. I haven't removed the Christmas decorations yet. I find it hard to taken everything down before Epiphany. In Provence, the celebration of the arrival of the Kings (January 6th) is also an important part of the celebration of the Nativity and I am going to try to bake the traditional brioche Gateau des Rois . 

Last but not least, the biggest undertaking was the family room/studio. The crafting frenzy started 50 days before Christmas. So imaging 50 days of sewing, crafting, gift wrapping and 50 days of kid playing with limited time for tidying. Piles of fabrics, gift wrap galore, a sea of toys and hiding under the furniture, frightening thread bunnies, fabric confetti, pins and beads. I should have taken a picture of the 'before' to better appreciate the 'after'. To spice things up, the whole family, including yours truly, was still recovering from a nasty cold. At least there was very little cooking involved. After all the feasting we were ready for a more simple fare. 

Only days until the New Year. We are now sliding quickly into my least favorite time of the year. I am trying very hard not to go into complete hibernation until the end of March. Good thing Amiefrom Kitty cats and Airplanes lives close by. We are going to meet for some crafty project. Something fun to look forward to!