Tuesday, December 27, 2011

the beautiful chaos that i call christmas
















This christmas was a bit of a blur... and unfortunately so were most of the pictures that i took of it. But it really was a beautiful sort of chaos. It left me feeling so thankful. Sometimes i just can't believe how lucky i am. How did i end up with so many wonderful people in my life? How was i so lucky to get four perfectly healthy and happy children? I am full of gratitude when i think about all of the people who have done so much for us, and the ones who constantly have us in their thoughts. I am inspired by the selflessness of a certain father in law who came to our house for christmas and worked almost the entire time to fix up our bathroom. I feel thankful for all that they constantly teach me about life and especially about giving this season. 
There is nothing more important than family and i am so lucky to have so many amazing, loving, and thoughtful people in my life. I am so grateful for every single one of them. It really was a merry christmas. Whether you were on the giving, or the receiving, end this season... i hope you realize how lucky you are... that either you had someone thinking about you or you inspired gratitude in someone else. it is a beautiful thing.

Friday, December 16, 2011

the holiday bustle and flurry















did i really say something about posting twice a week? HA! i don't know what i was thinking... please disregard that. my posts throughout december will be quite sporadic. how are your holidays going? i hope they are peaceful and merry. we have had a lot of crafting going on around here.the kids have been very involved this year... which on one hand is just wonderful... and on the other hand is a bit stressful (not gonna lie here, it is). so, i'm going to make a little list to tell you a bit about the photos above.

  • the elizabeth bibesco quote in the window has really been inspiring me lately. "blessed are those who can give without remembering and take without forgetting." beautiful words.
  • the candies pictured above... peppermint bark and chocolate truffles... yum. there is a link to the peppermint bark recipe i used in my sidebar. i highly recommend it. it is amazing. it is very important to use the real white chocolate with cocoa butter though. very very important.
  • until a few weeks ago i did not know that there was real white chocolate. i thought it was all just made from sugar. no idea that there was supposed to be cocoa butter in there. i thought that i hated white chocolate. i was really missing out. if you are also missing out... i am really glad you know the truth now.
  • the little one (10 1/2 months now!!!) is suddenly growing up fast. sitting up, crawling, feeding herself, cutting new teeth like crazy, imitating all sorts of words... fun. i knew she would catch up but i didn't realize it would happen quite so fast.
  • the ornaments are our textured clay ornaments... link in the sidebar. they are a lot of fun and turn out so beautifully. sometime soon i need to post a more thorough tutorial.
  • the little tins contain peppermint lip balm (once again... link in my sidebar). this is a very simple and fun gift to make. one quick batch fills a dozen tins. the ingredients are coconut oil, honey, peppermint essential oil, and bees wax. it feels so wonderful on the lips. yes.... that's right.... i stole one for myself... trust me you would do the same.
  • and finally... after searching and searching for the doll i was hoping to find for eislee and not finding anything remotely close. i (last minute) decided to make one for her. now, i don't know why i do this to myself. i have been thinking about making the doll in that book for over a year now and kept putting it off. then a week and a half before christmas i decide to go for it? i know... enough said. wish me luck! (i am really gonna need it).
  • oh and so you don't get any sort of crazy idea in your head the i am capable of "doing it all." i want you to know that i'm not. my house is a disaster. did you notice how most of my pictures are close-ups? that's because i'm cropping out the mess. just so you know.
so that's what has been going on in this house lately. the last day of school is today and i am really hoping for a calm and peaceful week of christmas... and i am wishing the same for you.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

around the house : : it's beginning to look a lot like christmas













  •  the frosty mornings are making it look and feel like winter
  • every single bit of christmas that we have is out and layla says it's still not enough i think we will be making many more of those giant snowflakes (tutorial for those coming soon)
  • i will be making yet another stocking for our dear ollie... a white one with a green top (hopefully i can find some more of that fabric i used for the others)
  • my little ones have began making their christmas presents with layla leading the pack
  • does anyone else get choked up reading christmas stories? (please tell me i'm not the only one)
  • loving our new advent box.... those little drawers leave so many possibilities
  • hoping that your holidays are full of peace and happiness!