Nothing gets you in the holiday mood quicker than decorating your house or apartment with holiday-themed items. And you don't need to go all Martha Stewart on yourself or break the bank to do it. It just feels more like the holidays when you add little touches here and there that reflect the season. I find that shopping and decorating for the holidays lightens my mood, and makes me look forward to the holiday season, instead of dreading it. It used to be that we only decorated our surroundings at Christmas, but now, with a wide variety of affordable and pretty decorations for your home, you can get yourself in that holiday mood right now — Why wait until Christmas?

Don't throw out those extra pumpkins!

Got an extra pumpkin or two left over from Halloween?

Don't bake a pie out of it -- That's too much work and takes too long. First you would have to cut it open, then scrape out all of the pumpkin guts and bake the pumpkin in an oven for an hour, let it cool, then make a custard, crust and well, you see where I am going with this. Just buy a couple of those frozen pumpkin pies instead. They taste just as good (or better) and are a lot less labor-intensive.

Unless you live on a farm with cows, horses and pigs clamoring for leftover pumpkins, a better thing to do that throwing away your perfectly good pumpkin is to dress it up and turn it into a fun decoration for your Thanksgiving table or your front porch. Whimsy is still very in these days.

"They said there's a huge turkey flag out front..."

More and more people are hanging decorative flags on the front of their property during the holidays. What better way to help your guests find your house than with a nice Thanksgiving flag or banner affixed to the front of it?

A Thanksgiving flag would be a welcome sight on a cold, grey Autumn afternoon, and lend a cheerful note to your house. Even if you live in an apartment or townhouse, you can still affix one of these to your door or window.

Maybe you want to go the traditional route with a Thanksgiving turkey on your flag. Or how about a more general theme with seasonal colors and autumn leaves? The choice is yours, and with an almost endless variety of beautiful banners and flags to choose from, it just might take a while to pick just one.

"Precious....Precious!" (Oh wait, that's another ring).

It was thought once upon a time that a ring of bright flowers on your door drove away evil spirits. I just think they're pretty. And festive holiday wreaths aren't just for Christmas. I used to think that fall, or harvest wreaths were tacky, but that's because they were! They were overcomplicated and had little doo-dads embedded in them like miniature turkeys or little horns of plenty.

But many new fall wreaths are actually very lovely, organic and beautiful, festooned with real flowers in lovely autumn colors of golden, chocolate brown, vermillion and scarlet, and adorned with simple ribbons in order to showcase the last flowers of the season, forever preserved at drying time.

These wreaths make me think of times past when people worked the fields and harvested their crops, drying and preserving nature's bounty to see them through the cold winter months. There's just something about a wreath on your door that imparts a warm feeling of hospitality, and you just feel like it will bring good luck and positive energies into your home during the holidays.

What's that yummy smell?

It's easy to add warmth and ambiance to your home with reed diffusers. They are the hottest thing in home decorating, and really do add a nice touch to your home's interior.

I have several reed diffusers at home, and instead of air fresheners that can drape the air with a heavy fragrance, these just imbue the air with a delicate, fresh and inviting scent that refreshes your spirit and just makes everything seem fresh and bright.

Some of my favorite scents are pomegranate, cranberry, cucumber melon and many of the citrusy ones. For the holidays, choose warm comforting scents like cinnamon, vanilla and gingerbread. Not only do they smell wonderful, they also add a cheery spot of color to the room.

OK, nobody move - So You Think You Can Dance is on.

After a busy day decorating, put your feet up and enjoy a nice hot cup of coffee, cappuccino or espresso with someone you love, or just by yourself, made with an early Christmas present to yourself, a new coffeemaker or espresso machine. You do have to try it out before your out-of-town guests arrive anyway, so you might as well have a cuppa sumthin' and snuggle down to watch your favorite show.

We are living in more frugal times, yet we can still splurge a little on nice new coffeemaker or espresso machine, which is much nicer than standing in line at your local coffeehouse (and more economical in the long run).

I believe it is the little luxuries and indulgences that we do for ourselves that add joy to our lives and enhance our overall well-being.

Your home should be your sanctuary, especially around the holidays, so why not make it as cheerful, warm and inviting as you can. You'll be glad you did!