Welcome Home!
When the holiday season rolls around, and it’s rolling in right now, by the way, something wonderful happens.
We open up.
Houses that spend months in a cluttered and comfortable state get the full treatment. Floors are polished, windows are cleaned and candles are lit. Garland is strung and just days, or hours, after the Thanksgiving turkey is carved, the Christmas tree goes up.
The welcome mat is by the front door.
When my children were young, our family hosted an open house each year just after Thanksgiving. All afternoon we welcomed friends and family and neighbors. The table was covered with good food – most of it prepared by local caterers and shops – and the big silver tea pot was kept full of cider.
My children, dressed in their Sunday best, served guests and took turns taking plates and cups to the kitchen.
It was a wonderful day.
I haven’t done that in a few years. For one thing, good help, as they say, is hard to find. Teenagers don’t find the idea of dressing up and playing wait staff as appealing as children do. And, with one thing or another, the right time to throw a big party has been hard to find.
But whatever else is going on, I still put up the tree that fills the house with the scent of evergreen. I polish the floors and the teapot. I always hang a wreath.
The point is, we don’t need a party to dress for one. The same is true for our homes.
The spirit of the season is knocking. All you have to do is open the door.
This week in Home
This is the season of hospitality. In that spirit, the annual Spokane Preservation Advocates Holiday Heritage Tour of historic homes opens the door to four beautiful historic homes in the Rockwood area. This week’s cover story is a peek into one of the houses. And, in her latest HomeMaker column, Megan Cooley brings us crafty ideas from local crafters. As always, we’ve got tips for gardeners and portraits of creative people.
This time of year, the places we live shine their brightest. I like to think each issue of Home does that, as well.
Welcome!