Some Christmas Blocks....

I am hooked on making these blocks. Blocks were the very first thing I ever made when I started just a little under a year ago. They are simple, possibilities are endless and they are very affordable to make. They also make very cute gifts!

These I made with a 2x4 that my husband cut down for me into 4 inch and 6 inch tall blocks. I decoupaged scrapbook paper on them, and cutout stencils using my cricut expression. Super easy.

These however are my favorite. Love them.  These were made from the 6 inch blocks hubby cut from the 2x4, I painted them black, distressed them a bit,  I cut up pieces of burlap and tacked them onto the blocks with upholstery tacks, then I hot glued the old looking flashcards to the burlap.

I have a ton of these flashcards and lots more projects planned for them.

 

These were made out of 4 inch blocks cut from a 4x4. They have torn pieces of toile wrapping paper decoupaged on them. They were antiqued with an antiquing gel.

 Love the red toile!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I am Thankful for my Husband, my 2 beautiful boys, my family, I am Thankful for my Grams who started baking and cooking yesterday and is probably up doing so already so that the family can get together and eat a Delicious meal with each other :) I am thankful for her stuffing, it's seriously the yummiest, and definitely Thankful for the chocolate desert she makes! Know what else I'm thankful for? The tupperware that's bringing me home some leftovers :) Really though, I have so much to be Thankful for! I am Thankful for each and everyone of you. Your all wonderful, I have made so many friends since I have started this blog and met so many Awesome people! I hope you all have a Blessed day!! Enjoy your family time and eat lots!!!

Some early Thanksgiving Thankfullness...

Photo from Better Homes and Garden

I know it's not Thanksgiving just yet, but My husband, kids, and I were in the car tonight and he told me this Thanksgiving poem he had heard on WCIC, our favorite radio station. It could not be more true. Then he told me what he was Thankful for, it was really sweet :) I am Thankful for my Husband of almost 9 years who works so hard and does his best for his family each and everyday, I am Thankful for the 2 most beautiful, healthy, happy boys, I am Thankful for all of my family, I have so many things to be Thankful for.

 Thanksgiving

         Lord, thank you for this sink of dirty dishes,
            We have plenty of food to eat.

       Thank you for this pile of dirty, stinky laundry,
            We have plenty of nice clothes to wear.

And I would like to thank you, Lord, for those unmade beds in there,
            They were so warm and so comfortable last night.
            I know that many have no bed.

My thanks to you, Lord, for this bathroom, complete with all the
           splattered mirrors, soggy, grimy towels and dirty lavatory,
           They are so convenient. 

Thank you for this finger smudged refrigerator that needs defrosting so
           badly, it has served us faithfully for many, many years.
           It is full of cold drinks and enough leftovers for two or three
                       meals. 

Thanks you, Lord, for this oven that absolutely must be cleaned today,
           It has baked so many things over the years. 

The whole family is grateful for that tall grass that needs mowing,
            The lawn that needs raking: we all enjoy the yard.

Thank you, Lord, even for that slamming screen door.
            My kids are healthy and able to run and play.

Lord, the presence of all these chores awaiting me says you have richly
           blessed my family.

          I shall do them all cheerfully
           And I shall do them gratefully.

 This time of year, with the Holidays, and the cold I remind myself of the everyday necessities that we sometimes forget to be Thankful for, like heat, food, water, being able to buy my kids warm coats, hats, and gloves. It's tough for so many, it's tough for us. But we have what we need, our kids have what they need, and I cannot imagine them going without. My husband and I were talking about it tonight and how so many people are in need of so many things, including little things like coats for their kids. I just can't imagine. This is the happiest most joyous time of the year and it always breaks my heart just thinking about those who don't have these things.

This year I signed up for the Angel program through JCPenney's.com you can pick a child by age and location, buy what is on their need and want list, and if you order it from JCPenney's website you get free shipping, it does not ship directly to the child, none of that info is disclosed of course but it goes to the local Salvation Army where you live who then delivers them. Your items do not have to be purchased from JCPenney, you can buy them anywhere and drop them locally. I chose a girl, I have none and now I get to buy a cute little doll and a girly coat. Is it something we could really afford? Not really, but with my bargain shopping abilities I knew I could find something nice.

What do you do to help? What are you Thankful for?

How about that cute centerpiece up there from Better Homes and Garden, That would be super cute filled with Christmas goodies!

Have a Great One!

Decor for the kiddos...

 My husband, 1 year old, and I are all still sick. Husband is alot better, me I have the nasty chest cold. Gabriel is better but still not himself :( Here are a few things I finished up when I wasn't able to sleep.

Anyway here is a set of letters in Dinosaur paper I finished up for my Etsy shop. I love making these, I am making the CUTEST set right now for someone's new little baby girl :)

More necklaces, I know your probably sick of these but I love them! They are super addicting.

And just a cute little girly wall thing I made to put in my etsy shop as well. I love the colors.

Way back when I first started blogging or close to I won a giveaway for some cool vinyl decals, and I am finally using them. One is a huge family tree, however I didn't want it to be permanently in one spot on my walls, I change things frequently so wait til you see what I came up with for it! Also I hope to have a few Ballard Design inspired projects for you this week. If all goes well :)

Oh and the Sweet Heidi from The Craft Monkey won the Christmas Stocking giveaway, so sorry I forgot to post it sooner. Go me. 

Thanks for Stopping by!

An easy Christmas Ornament....

Remember me? Before I get to some super easy ornaments, let me bore you with the details of my week. First my tooth, grrrrrr...I was in so much pain Monday and Tuesday because of it, seriously it hurt. Can't get the work done on it until our ins. kicks in, Great, right?

Ok so I normally don't post pics of the kids but wanted to share a couple. This little Bugaboo turned ONE on Wednesday :( Well he also had his year checkup the same day ( stupid me, I know ), I am not kidding hours after he came home from the Doc he was sick. His eyes are all messed up and yuck, he's coughing, it's so awful. I hate when the littles are sick especially when they aren't old enough to tell you what's wrong and what they need or want. You know? Anyway, he's not doing any better and will be heading to the Doc again today I am sure. His birthday party is Scheduled for Saturday and I thinking we have to cancel. Do you think anyone wants to hangout at my germ infested house?

Here's the little guy just a few days ago, isn't he precious? Ah I love this kid. It makes me so sad that he is already One, time flies.

See this Nut? That's the husband a few days ago. We were at Grams for dinner and he helped me do the dishes and of course I had to snap a picture. No he doesn't have a beard, nor does he parade around in a Santa hat, lol. I just signed up for picnik.com premium photo editor and have been playing around with it, have you tried their free version? If not do so now, as it's AMAZINGly Fun! Soooo many fun things to do with pictures. Anyway this guy is sick and has the same thing the little bugaboo above does. :(

Isn't he handsome? He's 7 and will be 8 the 3rd of December :( This kid is so Awesome, I love him. He's smart, hilarious, and so sweet. He has the biggest heart. He was actually sick a little under 2 weeks ago, he missed almost an entire week of school and guess what? He woke up tonight vomiting. Guess where he was sleeping? My bed. Yippee. Oh and guess what he said as soon as he finished? Does this mean I get to miss school tomorrow? Haha! He loves school but I guess he needed a little break, lol.

Am I sick too? Yup, not as bad as my guys though, just a cold, couch, sore throat, that kind of thing. Hopefully it stays that way.

I have two parties I am hosting this weekend, one Gabes Birthday party on Sat. the second is a Tastefully Simple/Bra party I am hosting on Sunday afternoon but it's not looking like either will happen. :(

So have I been crafting? Making anything cool? Finishing up the hundreds of projects I ramble on and on about. Nope. I just haven't had the time. Plus I feel like poo and just can't. Do you ever have soooo many ideas racing through your head and know exactly how you want to do it, what you need, you have it all, but you just can't get to it? It kills me people. I seriously lose sleep over it. It's awful. I want a vacation, but to go on vacation every single thing would need to be done and I can't see that happening.

Ok I have bored you enough, Aren't these cute? I found packages of chipboard cutouts at Big Lots in ornament shapes, you get 21 one in a package for $2, woohoo! I painted them white, brushed them with modge podge and sprinkled on the diamond dust. So easy and these are fun to do with the kiddos too. My oldest lovees to craft with me!

I love diamond dust, it's so fun! I think they would be cute with numbers on them and shabby them up a bit.

They are much prettier in person, promise.

Don't laugh. I was playing.

I tried to make one similar to this one. This was on Ballard Designs website here. No it's not near as cute but it was fun and simple. I cut out the stencil using my Cricut Expression. I love that thing.

I have been trying to coupon on the side, you know when I'm not taking care of sick people. I went to CVS and had a coupon for everything shown. I spent $19 and some change out of pocket and got back $11 in Extra Care Bucks to spend on whatever. Fun! I think I did good, 3 lip balms, 2 Covergirl makeups, batteries, and a Huge Bottle of lotion. Not bad.

Well, That's all I have, I know sad.  I won't be around for a couple of days again, as we all fight off the germs, But I have some posts scheduled for you :)

Christmas Stockings Giveaway...

 Pictures property of South House Boutique's

So I have been MIA all week, Go me. It's been one of those weeks let me tell you. Laptop issues, my 7 year old missed all but one day of school this week, and I broke a tooth. Yes broke a tooth and it's soooo painful. Well I broke it a few weeks back and now it's worse. Obviously, right. So anyway, I am still in pain but missed you all dearly so here I am with a giveaway.

 

I wanted to do this giveaway on Thursday as I celebrated my 29th Birthday. Yippee. But it didn't happen. Anyway, I stumbled upon this FABULOUS Etsy shop South House Boutique's, the shop is full of Beautiful Christmas stockings, and so much more! Diane at South House Boutique's is seriously talented.

Aren't these the cutest? I love love love them!

And this, Love that red fabric and is that burlap? You know I love burlap!

And how cute are these mini ones, and yes that's chalkboard fabric!! These are so perfect for dressing up those place settings at your holiday tables! Hello people Chalkboard stalkings. A M A Z I N G.

 

How cute would a tray of these look display at those family dinners or Holiday parties you will be hosting? Gorgeous!

I want them all.

This is one of my favorites! And I love the idea of using it to hang on your front door! Perfect.

She also has some darling handmade skirts. How cute is this one?

And this ring, I love this ring.

Oh and what about this Harvest Sun poofy clutch made from Beautiful taffeta? Isn't it Gorgeous? You can even choose your color!

So what can you win?

A set of 2 of these little beauties! How cute is that? I love the tweed! Personalize them with some chalk, hang them from a chair, fill them with your favorite Christmas greenery, or Hang them on a door, they will be perfect anywhere! Use them at your table to mark your guests chair. I love the idea of these little cuties hanging on your door, or with a Christmas wreath. Diane has TONS of suggestions here.

All you have to do to be entered is visit her shop here and and come back here and leave a comment telling me what your favorite stocking (s) are.

For extra entries

1. Become a follower or let me know that you already are.

2. Blog about this giveaway and come back here and leave a comment saying that you did.

3. Add my button to your blog and leave a comment saying where you added it.

4. Make a purchase from her shop and come back and leave a comment telling me you did.

Please leave a comment for EACH entry so that you get credit for your entries!

Giveaway will end Thursday the 19th at 11:59pm and winner will be announced the following day.

Party Time!!! A Great gift giving idea....

I'm linkin up with Chris over at Just a Girl for today's "I can Make That Party", head on over here ( after your finished reading here of course :) and check out all the wonderful Holiday gift ideas!! So many great ideas!! And Guess what? You Can Make it!!

 I'm loving these jumbo pendants!! (***Edited to Add the link, So sorry forgot it! ) ****I got mine here, I didn't find the exact links to the ones I got but they are called jumbo pendants, they add things all day long to their shop so I am sure they will add more, you could always message them as well asking for them..**** These are soooo easy to make and all you need is a little scrapbook paper, the pendant, and diamond glaze! Oh and of course your chain. On this one I used some cute rub on words, love them :)

 

A bunch more that I finished up today. These were still drying :)

If you have been over to my blog lately you have seen these that I posted yesterday here. I changed out the cording to the hemp cording as I finally found it in this mess of a craft room.

I love the robins egg blue and brown polka dots!

 

I love how this one turned out! These are sooooo simple to make and they make wonderful gifts! I am completely addicted to making the washer necklaces. Oh and they cost next to nothing to make! You can find packages of about 25 washers at your local hardware store for a few dollars or you can buy them individually for pennies! Then you need the Diamond Glaze which in my area was impossible to find so I ordered it offline and a little 2 oz bottle made at least 20 scrabble tile necklaces and about 25 washer necklaces and I still have plenty more!! And if you have a local scrapbooking store and they don't carry the diamond glaze ask if they can order it for you, mine ordered me some last week!

I will be posting a video tutorial soon for the washer necklaces, I have tweaked this tutorial found here at the Creative Crate just a bit so check that out if you are excited to make your own and can't wait!

Now that my laptop is well again I have lots of projects to share with you this week including burlap topiaries ( yes you read that right ), a burlap tree skirt, Christmas ornaments, more ways to recycle that styrofoam into art, and some pretty family tree art! I am so super excited! Oh and I am sure you will see more necklaces, sorry but I'm addicted! I also have some Great giveaways coming up!! Including a custom kit from me with all the supplies to make your own necklaces!

Thanks for Stoppin by and Have a Wonderful Monday!

Washer Necklaces and More......

I am completely obsessed with making these if you can't tell! They are super easy, you need very few supplies, and they are cheap to make! I am working on a video tutorial for them as I have a few pointers that really make them easy.

Now I wouldn't normally use this type of twine for them but it's what I had and I am impatient and wanted to share them.

The pink one I made using some super cute jumbo pendants I got, and the one with the #1 I used a wood circle from here.

These are super cool stamped, I am working on that next! These are so inexpensive and make cute gifts!

I am working on this Christmas pretty...

And can't wait to show you what I am doing with this!

Had to share these, Aren't they soooo stinkin cute? I made them at Vista Print FREE. I have been addicted to Vista many years and it's all I use for party invites, and business supplies. Sign up for their emails ( which they do send quite a few ) and you will get emails for all their freebies and just pay the shipping! Anyone who wants the freebie email, shoot me an email and I can forward one!

And I also made these super cute invites for my little guys first birthday party that's coming up! Love them! The backs are even cuter and have his picture on them!

Have a Great Saturday!