Dream Appetit!

We are happy to report that Christmas dinner at the Dream was a success!

cheers!

We hosted our parents and served up a healthy dose of Boeuf Bourguignon.  It was our first attempt at making that dish – something we savored while traveling through the Bourgogne wine region in France this summer.  We were able to host Christmas dinner — our first in the Dream — thanks to our new table!  We’ve had our eye on the Napa dining table from Cost Plus World Market for months.  We pulled the trigger after getting a 25% coupon via email — while it was already on sale!  Score.

Our Christmas dinner adventure started on 12/24…

raw meat. lovely.

we chopped the meat into 2-inch cubes and set aside the grizzle for a pup treat later... because...

...raw meat may seem gross to you... but our pups drool over it (literally!). don't worry, we'll cook the meat before they get it.

next up: veggies, spices and wine (from the Bourgogne region, of course!)

we chopped up the veggies and added them to the meat

then we added the best part... the wine! we let this mixture marinate in the fridge for 24 hours.

While this fine concoction marinates… we enjoy…

...Christmas morning!

carrying on the Christmas quiche tradition in the Dream

bowdoin found what santa brought him (paris slept in, smart girl)

After opening some fabulous presents – that may or may not involve improving the Dream (!)… we were back at work…

our marinated concoction must be separated... into three parts...

veggies... marinade... meat.

now we have to put a bunch of stuff in our new dutch oven... cook it... take it out... cook something else... take it out... you get the picture... so we'll save you all the pictures (but yes, we took them). this is us cooking bacon and leaving behind the fat. YUM!

so much yumminess in one 7-quart pot

We leave that to set while we take off for another Christmas tradition…

a hike! clearly, we are not the only people with this tradition.

this is Christmas in Arizona, folks. awesome.

After burning a few calories… it was time to go home and EAT!

before our guests arrive... we set the table...

...get the hors de'voures and champagne ready...

bon appetit! (how much do you love the name cards? srsly.)

after filling our bellies... it's present (and family photo) time... consider this the before...

...and this the after! kinda messy for 6 adults and 2 dogs... but what will it look like when mini-dreamers are running around?! yikes.

So, that was our Christmas Day 2009.  Thanks for “sharing” it with us!  Now, we’re off to get ready for our NYE party.  We love having a house to entertain in!  HAPPY 2010!

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Merry Christmas from the Dreamers

We hope you enjoy the holiday with the ones you love.  We will be!  We finally have a “real” table and will be hosting Christmas dinner!  Of course, a post about that will be coming soon.

As you can see by the above photo – which is our Christmas card* this year – we’re big fans of photo cards and have LOVED reading all the fun ones we’ve recieved in the mail in recent weeks.  Here’s a sampling:

we love looking at these beautiful faces every day - too bad we only send photo cards once/year!

As proud “parents” – we also have to share our fun pup picture of the season:

they told him they want more peanut butter treats for Christmas...

So, merry Christmas from the four of us!  (Learn more about us on our new “Dream Dwellers” page.)  We’ll be back soon with new posts including: the drama surrounding our new kitchen appliance, before/afters of our family room, guest room and downstairs bathroom — and very soon what’s on the menu for Christmas dinner (think Julie & Julia!).

*Our photo was edited by Geoff Greene – a fabulous photographer based in Virginia.  Thanks, Geoff!  Check out his site: www.geoffgreene.com

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Christmas Dream Skirt

Up until now, our Christmas tree has been skirt-less.  She’s either bared her bits to the world until presents arrive to cover her up – or settled for some fabric strategically placed around her “bottom.”  Not anymore!

merry Christmas tree!

Let’s get a few questions out of the way right now:

• Yes, our tree is fake (real ones dry out way too fast here in the desert)
• Yes, our tree is a room in need of serious lovin’
• Yes, those blinds are awful… we’ll be working on that in the new year (hopefully)
• Yes, we forgot to tinsel the tree, but think it looks okay sans bling (it gives the skirt a chance to shine)

In fact, let’s take a closer look…

bits covered!

Please remember that Mrs. Dreamer is not an experienced seamstress and while there are numerous spots that could use expert attention – it serves its purpose.  However, in the DIY guide following, there are some skirt parts that we’ll keep under wraps.  Maybe next year, we’ll have more projects under the belt and can tackle the “difficult” spots.

supplies

Once we had our supplies in place… here’s how it went down:

traced out letters on the felt...

...making sure they were backwards so the ink didn't show.

we did the same for the red fabric, which was the border, but we didn't want any seams...

so, we kept pinning the pattern and...

...flipping it over (it almost worked, there's one extra section in the back)

cutting all the pieces was quite a chore... once it was done, we set everything out to make sure it was just right

next up: sewing all of the pieces together

ironing the seams... so everything lays flat

then, we sewed the border - you can see the "novice" signs here!

we debated whether to sew or glue the letters on, in the end the glue won... just should have waited until the entire piece was sewn together (oh well, we're still learning!)

next up: embelishments (again, something we should have waited to do last!)

we sewed on the jingles...

...and glued on the flakes.

last step: sewing on the piping!

she's done!

Now, we need to cover her up with presents!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

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Dreamlets

We recently hosted another party in the Dream.  This one was girls only.

Our friend, Jessica just launched a new line of bracelets called Rhema Couture.  So, we threw a party!

Check out the pics, Martha-Stewart-would-be-jealous decorations (that Jessica and yours truly made all by ourselves…  if I sound proud, it’s because I am), and if you like what you see (which you will) check out www.rhemacouture.com.

*WARNING: This post gives you a sneak peak at our family room afters… so… if you’d rather wait for that post just check back later (who are we kidding?!).

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