making a house a home

As I mentioned in the last post, as I was snapping away to show you my curtains and table, a few other things caught my eye that I took a moment to enjoy. I know not everyone is into decorating, and while I enjoy it, I certainly am no expert. I wouldn't even say I'm good at it. But I do know what things make me happy, and so those are the things that I choose to use to make my home feel cozy. It's not necessarily the trendiest things, and certainly not fancy or 'high end' items. But I like things that represent what is important to me. So, for those of my friends who I only know via blogland, and don't get to visit me in person, I thought I'd share with you some of the items I like to keep around and their significance. (Please excuse the dust; if I had taken time to quick dust, I would never have gotten the pics done before the kids came bombarding back, and these posts would have been put off again for another week...or two!)

First off, is my collection of Willow Tree figures. I like them because each of them reminds me of my family, or something about our life together. And they are significant because most of them were given to my by my husband and kids. This grouping always stays together because every member of our family (all the way down to Miss Maggie) is depicted.
Until recently I hadn't thought about using books to decorate, but I really like the look. I've seen some people post about just buying some cheapy books to use for this purpose, but we are blessed to have some genuinely old books, that actually have value to us because they belonged to my husband's grandfather who was a church planter and minister (like us) and also a bishop in the Mennonite Church. These books, even just by their titles, speak of our heritage.

I have had these bronzed baby shoes for years, and never thought much of actually setting them out anywhere. But since I've been more aware recently of keeping things with meaning out and around, I thought they actually made a nice little decoration for my end table. Sitting atop a doily from one of my aunts, with a candle tucked in the middle (it makes a pretty glow when lit in the evening) seemed like just a sweet reminder of my dad.
Speaking of which, since my dad passed away almost 4 years ago, I like to keep lots of little reminders of him around, both for myself and my kids. They loved their Pappy dearly, and I truly hope they never forget him. We often talk about how he is just waiting with Jesus right now til he gets a new and better body and we can all be together again. In the meantime, we have plenty to remember him by, including this little stool he crafted for Kaitlyn for Christmas when she was about 4 years old. My dad could be quite crafty in his own right...guess that might explain me a little bit...

And lastly, while it isn't anything overly sentimental, I do love when I can bring in fresh cut flowers from my own flower bed to add a little of nature's beauty indoors.
So, tell me...what do you like to surround yourself with?