A perfect gift for the Little Bayou House!

Once in a while, someone will give you a gift that just fits.  It is rare that I don't truly appreciate any gift I receive but there is just something about a homemade one that warms the heart no matter how simple the gift may be.  My sister-in-law, Linda, has taken it upon herself to create the most fanciful gifts for everyone on her list.  How she does this is beyond me!  She is one busy lady but still sends not one small homemade gift but a whole bagful of goodies!  She always sends handmade ornaments and I have yet to ever see any two times be alike! Also, she will make and send candy wreathes or candy trees and a few scented candles.  If you look really far down in the bag, you will find some really tasty homemade jams.  These are all amazingly beautiful and all impeccably wrapped but regardless, my favorite thing she sends is pine cones!  Yep!  For the past few years, she has sent a basket of pine cones!  Not just plain, old pine cones, these are coated in scented wax!

This year, the pine cones were piled high in peck. (Now there is a word that you city folks might not recognize so I will clarify.  I am sure that you have heard of a bushel..well, a peck is one fourth of a bushel!  The baskets look much the same only the peck, of course, is much smaller!)  Like I said, they pine cones were piled high in a peck making the most delightful display!  I love to receive these pine cones since as soon as the plastic wrap is removed, the entire house starts smelling like Christmas!  There is just something so homey about pine cones piled in a basket or lining the shelf during the holidays!  Linda always tells me that I am supposed to use the cones as starter for my fireplace but I have news for her!  I never do!  I save the cones from year to year and am getting quite the collection now!  This Christmas, I have them on the shelves in the dining room, in the antique coal bin that sits by the dining room wood stove and on the mantels in both the living room and dining room!  They add a bit of color and a lovely "down home" touch to any decorations..perfect for the rustic look of the Little Bayou House.

Thank you, Linda!  I love my pine cones!  (And, nope, they will not be burned!)