Season’s Greetings! Barbara and Bruce Create a Christmas Wonderland in Their Home

I have always loved Christmas - the joys, the sounds, the smells, the decorations, even the craziness. I love it all.

My husband, Bill, and I have some friends who are great collectors of Christmas decorations and they have been making and collecting items for many, many years. They recently had guests over to the house for a Christmas gathering and we got to experience again their love of all things Christmas. They have graciously allowed me to use photos taken that evening in this post and I have way more good shots than I can possibly include here, but here are some to give you an idea of what fun it was to walk into the Christmas Wonderland they created in their home. It took them over two weeks to set everything up, so you can imagine how much was there.

This is the entrance area to the house.

 

Even their doormat was special.

Once inside the house, there were decorations everywhere you looked. It was magical!

They had even built their own creche! Bruce built the stable and Barbara made and fired the figures by hand. It was obvious this had all been done with love.

Their daughter had given them this amazing painting from a local artist, RJ McDonald. Notice anything special about Santa’s tree? (hint: enlarge the photos and look at the tree top and in the branches)

Under their Christmas tree, decorated with family ornaments and ornaments they have found in their travels through the years, they had created a tiny little town. Barbara had built many of the buildings by hand and Bruce had created a multi-level base to fit around the tree. They covered it with “snow” and set up the town.

There was Christmas everywhere you looked, in all shapes, colors and sizes - including even the kitchen! What a treat to find new little scenes with so much attention to detail in every little vignette. It was like being in a magical Christmas museum.

You could feel all the love and care they had so tenderly placed in their Christmas items and it must have been wonderful for their children to have grown up with that. It certainly was a treat for us to be able to share in the special Christmas cheer. Can’t wait to see how they set it all up next year!

Bruce and Barbara, thank you for sharing your home and your generous spirits with us. We hope your holiday season is a magical time with family and friends and happy memories to savor forever.

Erica and Michael Celebrate their Wedding at The Arrowhead Inn in Durham, December 18, 2010

Erica and Michael met in a Spanish class at UNC many years ago and it was three months before she finally got up the courage to ask him out. They’ve been together ever since that first date and on a very cold and sunny day this December they married under a beautiful white gazebo at The Arrowhead Inn.

Originally, the wedding was to have been a surprise for all their guests, with them being invited to what they were to think was an engagement party, but Erica and Michael just couldn’t contain themselves and eventually spilled the beans. That didn’t stop their families from celebrating with high excitement and joy and despite our all standing outside in the cold for the wedding, Erica and Michael said their vows in the outdoor wedding that was very important to them. So important, in fact, that even though Erica was sleeveless in her lovely wedding dress while the rest of us were shivering in our coats, she says she never even felt the cold.

They chose as their wedding location the very special Arrowhead Inn, lovingly cared for by the innkeepers, Gloria and Phil Teber. Decorated up for Christmas, it lent an even more special ambiance to the house and grounds and it matched the festive mood of the wedding couple and their guests.

After the ceremony, everyone lingered outside a bit, waiting for the photographer to get a group shot. Their families had come in from all over the USA and it was very important to Erica and Michael that they get a shot of everyone together. While we waited, I was able to catch a couple candid moments with my camera while the happy couple greeted their guests. It was all very sweet.

And someone even got a shot of me with the handsome newlyweds.

Afterwards, they all went into the house to share a meal at a beautiful table set up beside the Christmas tree in the back parlor.  It looked so charming and inviting, like a Norman Rockwell painting.

The simple, elegant cake was provided by The Cake Lady, who always does lovely cakes.

It was a cold day, but all the emotions were so warm you would have almost never known it. Erica and Michael, I hope you are always surrounded by the warm, kind love that was so evident on your wedding day.

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Others on had to make the day a success;

Flowers - Nancy Dawson of Special Event Florals

Photographer - David Gardner ( I only got his name, but I will add his information here once I get it)

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Gloria - Thanks so much for sending me out with that warm and delicious apple cider. It was wonderful!