What I Wore Wednesday {Inspired by Pinterest}

Pinterest has been such an awesome tool for me to keep my ideas and inspirations organized. It can be addicting and time consuming if you let it, but I've found that it's really helped me lately.

I've planned meals better, been more organized around the house, and have gotten style ideas that I never would have thought of before.

I have a style board on Pinterest where I keep clothing and style ideas and last week I used one of my pins as inspiration for an outfit.

Here's the pin:

And here's my thrify version:

Jacket: Goodwill

Green top: Target

Striped top: Goodwill (White House Black Market)

Skinnies: Kmart

Flats: Ross

Scarf: gift  from my sister (Ann Taylor Loft)

Hope you are all having a great week! It's been so nice having Avery home from school this week. No more rushing around in the mornings! 

And we are pretty much just living in our jammies. What could be better??

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from our family to yours!

Thank you for taking the time to read this little blog, for your friendship, and for inspiring me to be a better mother, wife, and individual through your sweet comments and emails.

This year more than ever, I am so thankful for a Savior who did the unthinkable. He left His perfect home in Heaven and came to live among us in the most lowly of circumstances. Because He loved us.

It is the ultimate love story. And I am so thankful.

Wishing you much love, peace, and joy this holiday season!

One Year Ago

For the past few weeks, every time I would think about this Christmas season I got a knot in my stomach.

And I would remember last Christmas. What a tough time that was.

Violet was 7 weeks old and caught a cold, which turned into a serious case of RSV/bronchiolitis. When I took her to the ER two days before Christmas, I had no idea that we would spend the next week and a half in the hospital.

Such a scary time. We had to hold her upright at all times because she couldn't breathe lying down. She had a terrible, gaspy cough that would last for hours. We spend four days at a community hospital, then were transferred to the intensive care unit at Hershey Medical Center where we spent the next week.

I was by her side almost all the time and I missed my other two kiddos like crazy. But the experience made me realize how our lives can be turned upside down so quickly and made me so grateful to have healthy kids.

And now, one year later, Violet has been so healthy and I am so thankful for her little life! She is precious.

All of the kids have had a bad case of the flu this week and now hubs and I have it too. Lots of sleepless nights, cleaning up messes, and holding sick babies!

But I am so glad that we didn't get sick over Christmas! Hopefully this year will be much more peaceful than last year.

I read back over the comments from my posts a year ago when Violet was sick and I'm amazed at the enouragement I received from you all. It was a treasure to hear your kind words while we were in the midst of that hard time.

THANK YOU for caring about our family. I'm so grateful.

I Like Old Stuff

I like old stuff and I cannot lie. I think that's how the song goes. Right?

Hee, hee.

So, happy Friday people! I'm finishing up my Christmas orders, making granola, starting the laundry, and drinking homemade grape juice for breakfast. So good. I don't drink coffee (much to my husband's dismay) but I drink fruit juice like it's my morning coffee. So there you go.

Back to the topic at hand. When I watch tv shows and movies, I'm always scanning the background to see the homes and decorations on the set.

I'm slightly addicted to the new show Once Upon A Time...have you seen it? So many good stories in that show!! I have a feeling it's going to be a major hit. It's a hit with me, anyway.

When I saw the apartment of Mary Margaret Blanchard on the show I got twitterpated.

Not sure if that's a real word, but seriously. Twitterpated.

So many great things going on in this apartment. Old wood, vintagey mismatched chairs, crates, hardwood floors, exposed brick walls, farmhouse table.

Yes, I think I like old things. Very much.

I love the idea of re-using and repurposing things that most people would throw in the trash. Turning junk into something functional and useful. Totally makes my heart skip a beat.



Do you love it as much as I do??

And tell me, what are your current fav tv shows?

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend! Christmas is almost here! 



What I Wore Wednesday {Thrift Store Edition}

Popping in for "What I Wore Wednesday"! Here ya go!

Thursday:

Purple top: Ann Taylor Loft Outlet

Gray cardi: Ross

Flower pin: Amelia's discount grocery

Skinnies: K-Mart

Boots: Goodwill

Sunday:

White top: Goodwill

Skirt: Down East Basics

Flower pin: King's Victorian (local shop)

Knee socks: Target

Boots: Plato's Closet consignment

Happy Wednesday friends!

Christmas Mantle

Last week I had fun fluffing up the fireplace and getting it ready for Christmas. I didn't do as much decorating as I normally do for Christmas this year, but I did manage to do a little here and there.

Over the Thanksgiving holiday I started on this coffee filter wreath (see tutorial here). After many hours of burned fingers (and maybe a few swear words), I finished it!

I used huge filters from my sister's coffee shop, so the wreath turned out really big and full, which I like.

I made this "Peace" pillow out of burlap. For the wording, I printed out the lettering onto cardstock (thick) paper, then cut out the letters to create a stencil. Then placed the stencil on the pillow and dabbed red craft paint on the burlap. Super easy.

  

I made these ornaments for a little Christmas tree that sets on a cabinet in our family room. I used old round ornaments that I no longer liked, covered them with strips of sheet music that I soaked in equal parts Elmer's glue and water, then sprinkled them with Epson salt to make them sparkle a bit. Then I tied them onto the tree with red ribbon.

This is a great way to re-use ornaments that aren't in great shape or are the wrong color.

Hope you enjoyed a little peek into my house!

Happy Monday!

My little Etsy shop has been hopping in the past few months, and I've been working a lot, trying to keep up with it.

Right now I'm on a time-crunch to get a bunch of signs and artwork orders out the door in time for Christmas.

It has been such a joy. Designing, painting, filling orders...at times it's definitely overwhelming, but I am so thankful to have this business.

If you've ordered a sign from me...thank you. My customers are truly the best.

And I couldn't work as much as I do if it weren't for my super-supportive husband. He takes vacation days off work and helps me without any complaints.

On this Monday, I am painting and shipping and hoping that I'll eventually have time to go shopping for Christmas gifts before December 25 is here!

Here's to a great, full week ahead!

Holiday Decorating Idea {Displaying Christmas Cards}

I've finally started my Christmas decorating and thought I'd show you the various methods I'm using for displaying all the Christmas cards that we receive from friends and family.

This is a card display rack from a store that no longer used it. I spraypainted it black and put it on our entry dresser.

This is a fun little wreath that takes almost no crafting skills. At all. I promise.

All you need is a wire hanger, burlap, and ribbon.

Form the wire hanger into a circle shape. Cut burlap into 4-5 inch wide strips. Fold the strips into accordian-shaped stacks and poke the ends of the wire hanger through the middle of the stack of burlap. (I hope that makes sense) Repeat the process until the wreath is full and hang with a ribbon.

Another Christmas card display idea is to use a shutter.

I bought this shutter at Goodwill and painted it red. Hubs attached a wood base to the bottom so that it has support to stand up, but it could also be hung on a wall. Just put cards into the slats and you're done!

I also hung some string up and attached cards to the string with clothes pins. I actually keep this up all year round and hang random pictures that we receive. Simple and fun.

Don't you just love getting all those Christmas cards this time of year? So fun. I hope this gives you some ideas on how to display them!

What I Wore Wednesday {Thrift Store Edition}

So, it's that time of the week again for "What I Wore" and just one outfit to show today.

Thanks for your encouraging comments on my last post! Despite what some of you were hinting at, NO I'M NOT PREGNANT!! It is now official. If I were pregnant, at least I'd have a good excuse for being tired, right? It is totally my own fault for taking on too many things and setting my expectations way too high.

Story of my life.

Anyway, here we go...

Dress: Goodwill (Target)

Scarf: from our trip to Paris years ago (sighhhh)

Belt: Goodwill

Boots: Goodwill

I'm Tired {This Is Real Life}

I don't remember when I've felt so tired. This whole "mothering-small-children" thing, coupled with all the "extras" that I tend to throw in, has gotten me worn out.

The good thing is - I know that you can relate and I'm not alone. And it's just a season of life. A season that I want to cherish, even when it's hard and when I haven't gotten a full night's sleep in a while.

The other day while I was folding and putting away laundry, Avery and Jack decided to start my Christmas decorating for me. (no, I have not started decorating yet, can you believe it?? I feel more tired just thinking about it!!)

They went outside and picked up some greens to add to the bunch of twiggy-things I have in a vase by the fireplace.

Then Avery hung some of Jack's dirty socks from the mantle. And they put books around the bottom of the "tree" and pretended they were presents.

I have to admit, I was a little bit proud of their decorating skills. It made my day.

This morning Avery asked me why I was so tired, and I told her that taking care of her and Jack and Violet is a lot of work and sometimes mommy gets tired.

She gave me a very sympathetic "Aw, that's ok mommy.".

Then two seconds later, "Can you get me a drink of water? And make sure it has ice in it.".

Kids.....you can always count on them to be understanding and helpful. Now, I'm off to take a nap!

Christmas Decorating Idea {Mason Jar Candles}

Happy Friday everyone!

Here is another Christmas decorating idea from the presentation I gave a few weeks ago. It's really simple actually ~ just mason jars filled with Epsom salt and a votive candle.

The Epsom salt looks like snow inside the jar. It's a nice touch for a porch or for along a walkway outside. You can find the salt in any drug store and it's really inexpensive.

I filled three quart-sized mason jars and put them inside an old homemade flower box that I picked up at a yard sale.

I added a few greens and pinecones to the box. And, of course, I just had to paint a number on the window box! Am I obsessed with numbers? Yes, I think so.

This idea is not original to me. I think I first saw it on Melissa's blog The Inspired Room. Her blog was one of the first decorating blogs that I read years ago. Melissa has tons of great decorating ideas ~ you really should check it out if you haven't already.

This week she featured my moss wreath on the DIY section of her blog. And the decorating website Houzz will be featuring the wreath in the next few days. How fun is that!

Have a great weekend!