Winter Blooms

My paperwhites just bloomed…

…And I received two bouquets of flowers, one being hydrangeas.

So I'm flower rich right now…

A reminder that spring and summer are happening somewhere out there in our big world. 

I'm thankful for the creation of flowers, thankful to have a God who wants me to see and appreciate beauty, I think for me, beauty heals something inside, makes me turn to God in gratitude…puts things in perspective maybe.

Garlic Rocker

I found this little tool at a little shop in Florida. Just rock it back and forth over a garlic clove, minces easily and the clean up is simple. I think that's why I like it, so simple. And as your rinsing it, the stainless steel removes the garlic smell from your hands.

Just thought I'd share a good find with you all, go HERE to buy one. 

Cozy Evenings

Thank you God, for sending your son to this cold, dark world to show us the way to you. Help us to see our brokeness, to invite you in and be filled with your light.

"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it." John 1:5


"She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." Matthew 1:21

Right Now

We are two days in to the holiday and I've enjoyed the slow mornings so much already! The children maybe not so much, I had them help me do a marathon house cleaning yesterday and then last night my little guy came down with a fever :(

I have a few projects to show you, one being this buffet that I painted.

I can't seem to find the before picture but you can imagine, dark, speckled brown finish with lots of dings.

I put my hot chocolate tray on it. This is always a favorite in cold weather!

We are gifted every year with a large poinsettia and this year I decided to stop fighting the red and just go with it. I'm really liking the pops of red for now even though it's not something I want to live with long term.

I found this toast holder? at Goodwill. I like to put old photos or cards in it.

I had fun making this Anthropologie knock-off wreath with my daughter's help. I like it, though it does sort of look like shaggy carpet. :)

I copied this fireplace scene from Pinterest. I can't seem to link to it. Every winter I wish for a real wood fire, this is my make-believe one!

I am re-upholstering my yellow chair. I love the pop of yellow sunshine it brings and will miss that but it was getting too shabby with a hole in the cushion and some stains. 

Our local U-fab store just moved a bunch of their velvets downstairs to the discounted section and I was excited to find a lovely brown velvet for $10 a yard! (They have some really nice browns, grays and beiges for those of you who are local.)

This will be interesting as I've never worked with velvet or a channel back chair before.

The children had fun constructing these reindeer cookies - what would we do without Pinterest inspiration?

See you later...

We went on a trip...

…we had a great time, I will post more pictures later, but for now, this pretty much sums it up.

" I went to Lego-Land. I petted a Cow-Nosed Ray. I went on a roller coaster. I built a sandcastle at the beach. I went on a kayak ride. I got sick one day. The next day I was better. I flew home on an airplane. That's all! "

~by Carter

Hallie added in parentheses (He wants to write) meaning we did more on our trip but that's all he put down. This was a homework requirement for school. So funny :)