This is the time of year, you want a warm comforting feeling surrounding you, when you walk through your door after a busy day…

This is the entryway in our Yellow House, I like how I can see the fireplace when I walk through the door, hopefully visitors will feel the same!

The photo on the left is our entryway when we first moved into our house, 20 years ago…notice the closet door has a vent below it and there is no rounded archway going into the kitchen! The photo on the right shows how it looks after renovating…Victor moved the vent around the corner on the wall, so it wouldn’t be under the door and he put a rounded archway, as seen in the top photo!!

This photo is a view of the entryway coming down the staircase, the living room is straight ahead!

And this is the entryway from the living room, notice the newel post, we added the decorative finial on top!!

Coming in from our backdoor, our guest powder room is straight ahead, but I hope I’ve decorated in a way you don’t notice right away that it’s a bathroom!!

Turning the corner, is a gate leg table to put keys and gloves on when coming in the door and a shelf above it, with family pictures, that give a warm and comforting feeling!

 Part of that comforting experience is smell, I want a pleasant scent greeting me or guests as we come through the doorway. 

This candle was a Christmas gift from Patty, my sister-in-law!! It’s a Magnolia Candle by Joanna Gaines, and she says about this candle…”Twelve Nights: A winter walk through the woods—wrapped up in a candle. Our Twelve Nights Candle smells like boughs of cedar, Fraser firs, and the sweet smell of citrus.” 

I haven’t even burned this candle yet, and it smells wonderful just sitting on my counter, so my guess is, it will be many times better when lit…Thank You Patty and Don!!

This is the foyer of The Train House. A lamp and fresh flowers are something simple to add to an entryway, for a warm and inviting vibe. Also, notice the window up on the staircase…

We added a stained glass panel to the window, for privacy, instead of a curtain or blind.

A closer look at the two tier vintage side table, if you think the books look really shabby, well they are…they were my father’s college chemistry books, which makes them almost 90 years old. Below is a basket to collect shoes, comes in handy!

Hope these ideas will inspire you to add comfort and warmth to your home during these cold days of winter!

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If your family is like mine, you will be watching football this weekend…Victor is making ribs, Gina and Family are bringing the best nachos in the world and I’m making Football Rice Krispie Treats!!

These are the ingredients.

Football Rice Krispie Treats

Ingredients

• 4 2/3 cups Cocoa Rice Krispies cereal
• 10 ounces marshmallows (about 40 regular OR 6 cups mini)
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 4 Tbs of butter
• 1/3 cup vanilla frosting

INSTRUCTIONS

• Line a baking tray with parchment paper and set aside.

• Pour the Rice Krispies in a large bowl greased with cooking spray. Set aside. 
  
• Coat a saucepan with cooking spray. Start to melt the butter on low heat.
  
• Add the marshmallows, chocolate chips, and butter in the pan. Heat on low, stirring frequently until the marshmallows are almost melted.
  
• Remove from the burner and stir, using the residual heat to fully melt the marshmallows and chocolate. The mixture should be very smooth.  
  
• Pour the chocolate marshmallow mixture over the cereal. Stir very well, coating every piece of cereal. Overturn the treats onto the baking tray. 
  
• Using a buttered spatula evenly press mixture into a 13 x 9 x 2-inch pan. Cool in refrigerator for 10 minutes.
  
• Cut out with football cookie cutters, trying to cut as close to each other as possible to minimize scraps. 
  
• Scoop some frosting into the decorating bag and twist the top. Snip the tip. Pipe the football stitching. Let set before handling. 
  

On the left, marshmallows, chocolate chips and butter, melting on stove. On the right, combining melted mixture into Rice Krispies.

After smoothing mixture onto pan, then cooling, cut out shapes with a football cookie cutter.

After piping on the football stitching with frosting, let set until frosting hardens. Then they are ready to serve and delight kids and adults!!

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In light of what is going on in our country today…We can try to change our world, but it is becoming increasingly difficult…so for now, we are lucky enough in America to be able to control what happens in our homes…why not make it a loving and comforting environment, when we walk through our doors!

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