Happy Boxing Day, St. Stephen’s Day, Day after Christmas, everyone. We had lots of family for the holiday, and I’ve been elbow-deep in dishes all day long because the garbage disposal had the audacity to become jammed right in the midst of my Christmas feast preparations, taking the kitchen sink and dishwasher out of service. Just to clear out the kitchen, I put dirty dishes in the bathtubs, the mudroom, the cellar…and after everyone left this morning I started working my way through them, primarily in the powder room sink! No plumber to be found yet….
The calm before the storm: all the clean dishes on the table before the Christmas Eve Feast of Seven Fishes, cooked almost entirely by my husband. I went a bit more formal for the next day’s feast, despite my lack of dishwasher, and I paid the price today.
I’ll spare you too many pictures of after: I’m sure everyone has faced their fair share of dirty dishes, trash bags full of wrapping paper, and too many empty boxes and wine bottles.
But I’m not complaining; I’m happy to clean up after this holiday weekend, full of family, friends, food, drink, and very thoughtful and creative gift-giving! Snowshoes from my husband, which I can’t wait to try out but will probably have to given our complete lack of snow (just a few flakes on Christmas Day). Beautiful Christopher Moore linen tea towels with prints from the late seventeenth-century series of etchings by Nicolas de Larmessin and Gerard Valck entitled Les Costumes Grotesques et les Metiers (Fantastic Costumes of the Trades) from my brother and brother-in-law, including the Parfumeur, the Vigneron (see below), the Paticier, and the Jardinier. A pretty Anthropologie apron from my stepmother that I wore all day yesterday to cook in, and much of today to wash my dishes.
Here’s an after image: another present from my stepmother, which I haven’t opened yet because I can’t believe she took the time to search out wrapping paper that looks exactly like the upholstery on my couch, a wilted evergreen arrangement which held out until today, the day after Christmas, and a truly grotesque sheep (the bright orange “ball” you see are his lips), a family “heirloom” which we wound up with in the Christmas Eve Yankee swap.
December 26th, 2011 at 5:16 pm
Your table through the dining room doors looks absolutely stunning. What a wonderful day you must have had and what an absolute Bore to have to wash the dishes in the little girls room.. just a matter of head down and get on with it i suppose.. beautiful gifts.. c
December 28th, 2011 at 5:33 pm
Thanks, Celie, Happy New Year to you and your family.
December 26th, 2011 at 6:40 pm
It sounds like you had a wonderful day considering the the circumstances of being without a sink. In the past, I had to use a bathroom sink for washing dishes for six months. Hope you find a plumber soon. It is lovely when we get gifts that are as lovely as your tea towels.
December 28th, 2011 at 5:32 pm
All fixed! Six months! You put me to shame for complaining about 2 days, Karen.
December 27th, 2011 at 7:31 am
Love the pics! You can tell that a good meal is served at that table!
December 28th, 2011 at 5:31 pm
Well, we tried! Happy New Year, Mark.
December 27th, 2011 at 10:42 am
I can see you had a wonderful christmas 🙂 Your dining room looks amazing!
Best Regards
December 28th, 2011 at 5:30 pm
Thank you so much and Happy New Year!
December 27th, 2011 at 8:38 pm
Wowie-Zowie! Looks gorgeous! Happy New Year to you guys!
December 28th, 2011 at 5:30 pm
Thanks Rebecca, you too.
December 30th, 2011 at 10:01 am
Great room—I always enjoy the early Victorian spaces added to earlier houses.