This was the best birthday present I got today. Watching Ella open a belated birthday gift herself (thanks Grey & Ryan!!). She reminded me this morning that it was my birthday by singing to me on the way to work. She & Gran left me two messages on the phone at work. Nana blogged about me. Ella, Lauren, Maddie & Heidi called me at work to sing again... and all got confused about whether to say "mommy" or "Kristin". Heath & his family called and left me a LONG birthday message, complete with songs, well wishes and a reminder not to run any red lights. I got cards in the mail, in person and taped to my back door. I got plenty of e-mails, e-cards and blogger comments. Josh sent me a text message at 2:14 this morning! My oldest friend on the planet took me to a lunch ...
What do crafting & pottying have in common?
Christmas decorations! Before going any further, let me say that unless your name is Kamin, it is rather impossible to photograph Christmas lights and have them turn out pretty!! These photos are a from the craft room. Although the mantle looks REALLY cheesy here, in person it is actually quite cute. I have a large mirror over the fireplace with three evergreen trees in various sizes. I added large vintage-looking colored lights and red glittery snowflakes to the garland and hung our extra stockings from the mantle. Although I don't usually use colored lights anywhere in my decor, I did this for Ella! She calls the craft room the "playroom" and we spend lots of time in there. Since the decor is decidedly more juvenile than the rest of the house, I decided to decorate for Christmas a ...
Garland and Lights
Garland and lights are all the decorating we do in the master bedroom, but I always love the way they turn out. Above is a picture of the mantle above our headboard. I left the photographs and mirror there, but added a few cream colored candlesticks with candles and the lit garland. Here we have plugs in the mantle so it is easy to light. We have really tailored curtains in the bedroom and they have a 4 inch platform at the top that holds our garland perfectly. I use a staple gun to attach the garland here and then add the ribbons and stars to either side. I always use my cheapest and least attractive garland here because you aren't close enough to see the details and this garland "sheds" if you touch it too much! I wish we could add lights here, but there obviously aren't plugs 7 feet ...
Where’s Waldo…
I mean Ella. Oh, there she is... Amidst fifteen or so rubbermaid containers in my dining room overflowing with Christmas decorations!And I forgot to post this picture last night. My precious girls having some last minute snuggle time before bed. ...
Deck the halls
This is what Ella & I did last night, along with a few other rooms of Christmas decorating. This is the white tree (from Dollar General!) that I bought for her room her first Christmas. I use a short strand of icicle lights -- it makes decorating a small tree SUPER simple. Just wrap the main cable around the center of the tree and use the short icicle strands to individually wrap some branches. I have also added lots of pretty, feminine pink and silver ornaments each year. The tree skirt is a pink and white tutu I made for her to wear in her birthday portraits last year. She's terrified of tutus so it works out perfectly. Isn't is precious? ...
Beemer, too
In case you didn't know, everybody loves this bed. ...
Big 1-0-0!
I can't believe I've been at this for 100 posts! I'm sorry that I don't have something fabulous to say, share or give to you. Instead, I'll share a few more pictures from Baker's, especially since I promised one a day this week and failed to share them all earlier. Here are a few more of my favorites. This is possibly my favorite family picture of all time. If it weren't for the pumpkins, this would definitely be making an appearance on our Christmas card this year! ...
Feather her nest
After renovating the "big girl abode" this weekend, we've all been throwing around ideas about how to decorate it for Christmas. As you know, I'm starting the festive decor this week, so I'm racking my brain. We are thinking of doing some kind of sheer/garland/lights over the bed, which in this house is referred to as the "Christmas Spirit" or spirit for short. It has been tradition since we moved into this house to decorate the headboard or above the bed with lights and garland - it is Josh's favorite decoration! I also wanted to do some wreaths in her windows. K suggested white feather wreaths, which sound lovely. I checked them out at Target today and they cost $29! I needed three, so that was out of the question. Instead, I headed out to Hobby Lobby for some inspiration. I bought ...