A Bit of Green to Bring on Spring

Green Throughout The House

To be honest, I'm not that big on doing lots of decorating for St. Patrick's Day. But, I do enjoy adding bits of green throughout the house to give a little nod to the fact that Spring is just around the corner. I've really been enjoying this candle ring that features greenery with lovely silk flowers in pinks, purples and blues and those sweet little speckled green eggs. 

I re-arranged some of my winter decor to give it more of a transition to Spring vibe. I pulled out the flameless candle from the wire candle holder and surrounded it with the candle wreath and then moved small flameless candles into the wire candle holder. My snowflakes signs have been put away until next Winter!

I love turning on these candles at night and seeing the lovely glow they create in the corner of my living room. It never fails to give the room a warm and cozy feeling!

The white candles and green wreath continue to blend well with the green vases already on display on the side table. I really don't intend to put the wire vase holder away, even during the summer, at this point because I like it so much. I might move it around to another location perhaps, but I'm not planning on packing it away. As usual with my decor, I like how the green is subtle enough to fit in with the surroundings. Some of the St. Patrick Day greens are quite bright and glaring and I don't care for that look. 

Here is the upper foyer table adorned with a few more items. You'll remember my nature sign I created and shared with you in an earlier post. I decided to add a few more items to go with it such as the blue Laugh sign, a cute ceramic rabbit and the green faux cactus plant. The cactus was a dollar store purchase and I can't get over how real it looks! No worries about it dying or the cats eating it! The dollar store has several styles of these and they are a perfect size. 

I like this Laugh sign better now that I removed the butterfly wings that were attached to each side. The wings looked odd to me and made it hard to fit the sign on a table with other objects. The wings were screwed on and I kept them so they can be put back on if I so decide. 

And, here's a look at the lower foyer table. Not too much green here, just a few leaves on the Spring Thyme sign. 

But, the lower shelf does sport more green with the bunny's Welcome sign!

My front door wreath has green leaves mixed in with lovely gold, pink and blue flowers. This "wreath" is a larger candle ring. Have you ever thought of using a candle ring as a wreath? They come in much larger sizes now. 

And finally, how about some green soup?!  This is actually broccoli-cauliflower soup that I have been making frequently of late. The Mr. loves it and so do I. Let me tell you how I make this soup. It is soooo easy! (As always, know your allergies before making/eating foods). 

Into a large soup pot I place one bag of fresh broccoli and cauliflower pieces (the fresh bags you buy at the supermarket in the veggie aisle), one onion and one potato chopped into small pieces, one small can of white chicken not drained and one to one and a half cartons of low-sodium chicken broth. I add in my usual spices of a little black pepper and McCormick's Perfect Pinch Garlic and Herb salt free. You simply bring all of this to a boil and then turn down the heat so the mixture can simmer for around 30 minutes. This is a fast soup!

The final step gives the soup its creamy texture and I love this part! I use an immersion blender right in the soup pot to blend all of the veggies together into a creamy bowl of goodness! This soup is so yummy and we have been enjoying it several times each week. If you are not concerned about sodium, you may choose to add extra salt but, for us, the amount is perfect. I use the smallest can of Swanson white premium chunk chicken breast which has 310 mg of sodium in the can, so I know the exact amount of sodium in the whole pot of soup. The low sodium chicken broth I use is also Swanson brand unsalted chicken broth which contains 4 cups of broth with 40 mg of sodium in each cup. I'm new to using the immersion blender for soups and can't imagine why I haven't been using it all along. It is perfect for creaming soups without adding cream! (BTW, I'm not trying to sell these products, just sharing with you what I use. You may have other products you prefer to use.)

So, this is how green is being subtly added to my home right now. A bit of green to bring on Spring! How about you? How are you bringing on Spring right now? Clothing, decor, flowers, books? Hope you will leave a comment and let me know. I love hearing from you!

Until Next Time,

Debbie

*photography, writing, opinions by Debbie Ross