Happy New Year!

2012 was a good year for the McKinley's......

Both Mr. Math and I are both fortunate to be employed, our family enjoys good health, we have an amazing circle of friends,

and

We were blessed with our first granddaughter!

Cheers to 2013!!!

chris



A Christmas Tea!

Christmas Tea is a little different than the other teas Mary Ann and I host during the year........

daughters are invited, we exchange gifts, we provide the food for our guests rather than potluck, and we do something for our community......

This year we collected food for our local food bank.

Mary Ann and I take turns hosting the Christmas Tea....this year it was Mary Ann's turn to host and she out did herself!

She has a lovely collection of vintage tree toppers!

A few of us got together the day before to set the tables..way more fun to set tables with girlfriends!

Mary Ann made favors for our guests. She used vintage spools and put Christmas Trees on top. They were all a little different and each lady was able to pick whichever one she wanted.

For Christmas Tea our luncheon is a sit down meal....so much easier with a large crowd.

Maria made the salad, Mary Ann made a chicken dish that was served over rice, and I made the desserts....a brownie topped with a strawberry, and individual cheesecakes. Maria had a great Christmas Tree shaped cupcake holder that we used to display the desserts

I know our friends love coming to tea, and Mary Ann and I love hosting!!

Next up Valentine's Day Tea!!!

chris



An Xavier Ct. House Christmas!!

Merry Christmas!!

A few snap shots of Christmas at the Xavier Ct. House

I had to make another vintage ornament wreath....one for me

Mr. Math's and my stockings from our childhood

A Putz House village

Mr. Math's baby silver cup

The Nativity Set that my Dad made when I was 6 years old...he used my Barbie and Ken dolls as models....

This set is so special to our family

The Xavier Ct. House Christmas Tree!

Merry Christmas to you and yours!!!

Cherish your time with your families and friends....

and remember the reason for the season!

Warmly

chris



Short A Stocking!!!!

Last night as I was deciding whether or not I was done decorating for Christmas....and I am.....

I realized that this Nana's little granddaughter would be spending her first Christmas at Nana and Papa's

AND

this Nana had no stocking for her!!

I dashed away, dashed away, to the sewing/craft room to search for something to make a stocking....

I found a vintage child's hankie, and some scrap Christmas fabric....

I cut a piece of muslin in the shape of a stocking, and sewed my fabrics and the hankie onto the muslin.....I backed with another scrap of fabric, added a vintage lace trim

And now this stocking hangings with the rest of the McKinley stockings....

What a wonderful addition!

chris

And The Winner Is????

Today was the big day, drawing the name of the winner of my giveaway!!

Mr. Math was busy grading finals, so daughter number 5, Katie drew the winner's name.....

Heather, who blogs at Vintage Grey is the winner.

Heather, I will get this in the mail tomorrow so you can have it before Christmas!

Thanks to all who visit Perfectly Printed!

chris



Gingerbread Houses!!

Today 25 children came to the Xavier Ct. House with candy in hand, ready to decorate Gingerbread houses.

I provide the houses, and the guests bring the candy.

They bring all sorts of different kinds of candy....kisses, M&M's, peppermints, and gum drops....everyone shares the candy they bring....of course they always seem to want the candy the other kids bring....

How fun are these Kisses...red and white stripes!

Love the candy cane Christmas Tree!

There was Royal Icing, or the glue as the kids call it, everywhere!  The floors, the tables, the chairs, even the bathroom wall!

A little favor for the kids on the way out, ( a Hershey chocolate bar wrapped and embellished to look like a snowman) and we were done!

Always a fun day!

Be sure to leave a comment on my giveaway post.....Mr. Math will draw a name on Monday!

chris

Merry Christmas Mother and Dad......

My Dad was in France December 1944.......it was WWII......

his family in La Jolla, California.

He was a long way from home that Christmas.

He sent his folks a Christmas card, one that my Nana Patz framed and kept on her dresser forever.

I just love it....the soldier loving the children and the woman washing her clothes in the background.

I keep this special Christmas card out all year....framed and on the bookshelf in the family room.

Be sure to leave a comment on my post about my giveaway to have a chance to win a few vintage Christmas goodies!

chris

'Tis The Season For Giving!

I have decided it's about time I hosted a giveaway!!

A Hallmark honeycomb Christmas tree centerpiece, a small vintage Christmas stocking, two tea cups, and a few other things I've found over the year.

All you need to do is leave a comment on this post.....that's it....if you're not a follower and would like to be, that would be OK too!!

I will have Mr. Math draw a winner on Monday December 17th....and I will mail on Tuesday so you will receive the gift before Christmas.

This is just a little way of thanking you for visiting Perfectly Printed.  I have gotten to know so many wonderful, and creative ladies over the year.....ladies I have so much in common with!

chris

I Made One!!

I gathered vintage and new ornaments, and so many glue sticks I lost count, and sat down to make a wreath!

I had visited Meri's blog, ImagiMeri and looked at her tutorial about making wreaths with vintage ornaments.  It was a huge help!! Meri is also hosting a giveaway....give her blog a visit and see the lovely wreaths she is giving away.



I thought I had enough ornaments, but once I got started I realized I was short on medium and small ornaments...a few visits to the local Goodwill and I was good to go!

Today was our ladies group Christmas Tea.....the wreath was a gift for my girlfriend MaryAnn....I pretty sure she liked it!! 

chris

Whitman Sampler Swap

I've been working on a few swap projects, one of which was the Whitman Sampler Swap hosted by Elizabeth who blogs at Creative Breathing.

You were to decorate 12 of the small Whitman Sampler boxes...the ones that hold 4 pieces of yummy chocolate.

I used a mix of vintage and new to embellish the boxes.

I added a vintage stamp to each one...the date on the stamp is 1957.....the year I was born....

Holy Smoke!!

Me Vintage????

I was lucky enough to find a box full of gift tags, decals and small wooden ornaments at a garage sale this summer... they sure came in handy for this project!!

chris