One of the kids took this picture of the chandelier in the parlor. Not sure which kid. They frequently take the camera to take pictures of each other, the TV and random animals. The kid in the bonnet is my niece; the kid in green is Mimi.

I like how this picture turned out. The chandelier not original house itself but it is an original fixture from the 1880's. The ceiling medallion is original to the house.

The chandelier is the best part of the parlor. Okay- I like the fireplace too. I HATE the rest of the room. The chairs are too big. I hate the couch. I hate the fact I picked out red furniture (I bought the furniture in 2002 the day after we moved in. It was a hasty move. Dumb. I should have left the parlor empty until I really knew what I wanted).

Back the complaining- the rug is cheap looking. I like that the coffee table and end tables come from my grandmother's house, but they really don't work in the room or with the furniture. I want to re-do the whole thing. I keep seeing pool blue, maybe even with the red. Or make the entire thing white. I see a much smaller couch (like a love seat) with two smaller chairs all pulled to the middle of the room for actual conversation.

I scheduled this post for February 15 at which time I will be up to my elbows in making red beans and rice and a bazillion other things for the 175 people we expect to come here for our annual Mardi Gras party. It sounds like a lot of people (it is a lot of people!) but it's not too bad and feels more like an open house with people stopping by all evening. And when those 175 people come over, will they hang out in my parlor? NO! It's the most unwelcoming room ever. I guess I'll move the booze to the parlor and people will have no choice but to go in there. That's a sad parlor when the only way you can get guests to go in there is the lure them with booze.