A Visit from {SANTA}

it all happened so fast!


one minute the door opened and there was a
"HO HO HO!"


then masyn played him a song on the piano
and they each took turns sitting on his lap.
{except rose, who clung tightly to my arm}

and then off he went, as quickly as he came.
wishing us a merry christmas and in a hurry to get back to the north pole...

and speaking of the north pole...
i thought i'd share these really cute and really yummy cupcakes!

i used betty crockers cherry chip mix and her fluffy white frosting.
sprinkled with clear sprinkles.
stick a peppermint stick in the center, pipe frosting on top
and use a red gobstopper to top it off.


you can go here, to download the tags,
they are really easy and well received!

{EleVeN} days to go!!!

Holiday Scents

and a great gift idea!
i found this on pinterest {of course}
it originated here {a great blog}
and packaged it up with martha stewarts gift boxes
that i found at michaels.
{i added the greenery and red bow}


simply package together
one whole orange, 2-3 cinnamon sticks halved, 1/2 cup cranberries,
{one} Tbls. cloves and sprinkles of nutmeg.



you might want to add a tag that instructs your friends to
quarter the orange & add a cup of water
after each use, put it into a jar and re-use each day.
it should last quite awhile.
mine has and i LOVE it!

 

make many, everyone deserves the smell of christmas!

Welcome Back to Our Holiday Home

thanks for hangin' out!
come on into the kitchen
{i'm going to share the yummy smell soon!}

i broke the collages into
my desk and the kitchen table, the kitchen and then the dining room....

 

i found the striped socks in the dollar bin at michaels.
i LOVE them!

and the dining room...

i'll be back with more.
{TWELVE days 'til CHRISTMAS!!!}
ahhhh!

Our Holiday Home {Welcome}

welcome. thanks for stopping by.
i've got to get the kids all tucked in
so if you wouldn't mind, have a seat in the living room
and take a look around
i will be back to share the rest soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Christmas Gift Exchange

my friday night quilt class had our annual christmas party
and gift exchange friday.

everyone made some really nice gifts and i thought you'd enjoy looking at them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

lucky us!
i am grateful for all the friendships i have made and nurtured through this friday night class.
so many wonderful women!




p.s.  now that i'm ALL caught up! i will post my traditional home tour and then we will count down the days to Christmas with some simple gifts, as well as, some simple decorating ideas.
hope you are enjoying the spirit of the season and getting every thing done that you want to.

Happy Birthday to Me

we had our traditional turkey tacos
to celebrate my birthday!
yay!
grandma & mom celebrated with us.
mom cooked! thanks mom!!!


the kids were silly

loved having everyone home!

{Thanks}giving

we spent thanksgiving with my dad, janice and my sister's family in the desert this year.
i didn't take any pictures at dad's except the one of shawn's turkey.
YUM!
we had a nice, relaxing visit. suz & i did the cooking,
jan bought the pies {double yum} and the boys did boy stuff
all while dad relaxed in his chair {amazing}


we spent the evening at dad & janice's
and the next morning we headed to ocotillo to camp.
we met up with uncle chris and his family.

shawn took nolan's training wheels off his dirtbike and he did AWESOME!
he layed it down a couple times in the soft sand but picked it up and got right back on!
GOOD JOB buddy!!!

i just love taking pictures of gavin on his bike.
wheelies are his thing!

i grabbed a couple pics of brandon and evyn before we left
the boys to their camping.
us girls wanted to go home and take a nice hot shower!
happy camping boys!

the holiday was nice and trouble free
{with the exception of a minor miscommunication, that led to a lost auntie :( }