Because A Girl Can't Have Too Many Wreaths

I made another wreath today to hang on my wall shutters.  I never realized how many prime locations I have for some fun wreaths until the holidays came around, but now that they're here I can't get enough of them.  This one started with just a basic grapevine wreath that I already had.  I added some red and white berries, green glittery mistletoe and a cute little gold glittered bird, all of which I got at JoAnn's Black Friday sale.  I think I spent $5 on the supplies.  I hung it with some nice fat ribbon and wahlah!  Gorgeous!

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I Heart My PB Wreath

A few weeks back I posted about the Pottery Barn ornament wreath I wanted to make.  With Thanksgiving over, family gone and the house finally back in order (although we are still trying to get rid of 2 dogs dog hair) I finally managed to get some crafting done.  Here is my PB inspired wreath.  I used an old wreath that I had, a variety of green and white ornaments (some of which I already had and some from the good ol' dollar store) and then I attached the ornaments with floral wire.

I really like how it came out.  I love all the shades of green with just a few small white ornaments mixed in.  Of course I don't have the red door that PB has, but that will happen someday.

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A Busy Week

The last two weeks have been so busy at our house.  Here's just a few of the things we've been up to:

Lots of cleaning and organizing
Preparing the house for Thanksgiving guests
Christmas shopping - I'm almost all done now... woohoo!
Munchkins Christmas pictures - pics coming soon
I finally cut my hair off... it feels good to have short hair again
We got a good snowstorm Sunday night
In 'N' Out has finally opened and Andrew was kind enough to wait in line for over an hour so that we could taste the sweet deliciousness again
Andrew's mom has been visiting since Saturday
I've even managed to get in a few projects... posts to come soon

Well, both kids are sleeping and I'm off to bed for an early bed time tonight.  Next week I'll be back to normal and be posting again.  Here are a few pics for you though.

A few projects in the works...

We had an especially beautiful sunset Saturday night.

The backyard on Monday morning

It's so pretty when you don't have to go out in it

My Favorite Things

Today 320 Sycamore is having a "My Favorite Things" Blog Party.  It's always fun to see what other people love and would share with everyone.  Since I'm not Oprah and can't afford to give everyone the stuff that I love you'll have to settle for reading the list instead.  So here is my own list of favorite things.

1. Canon PowerShot S5 IS - I absolutely love my camera.  I would recommend this to anyone looking to invest in a new camera.

2. Mary Kay Satin Hands - This stuff makes your hands sooo soft.

3. Mary Kay Mineral Powder Foundation - I love that I don't have to take the time to blend in foundation anymore and this stuff is so soft and light on your skin.

4. Mary Kay NouriShine Lip Gloss - Beach Bronze is my favorite color.

5. Calphalon Contemporary Nonstick Cookware - I have three of these pots and pans and absolutely love them.  It's my dream to have a full set one day.

6. Dyson Animal/Ball Vacuum - This has been a great vacuum for us.  It does an amazing job with dog hair.

7. Neutrogena Deep Clean Cream Cleanser - This makes your face feel so clean.  I've never found anything that works as good as this.

8. Tiny Temptations Candles - I have the White Buttercream scent.  These are the best candles I have ever used.  My whole house smells so good when I light this.

9. Bath and Body Works Sweet Pea Body Cream - This is one of, if not, my favorite scent from Bath and Body Works.

Ella's New Dress

I finally did it.  I summoned the courage to sew a dress for Ella.  I've been seeing all of these little sweater dresses for girls all over blogland and thought they were so adorable, but I've never sewn clothes.  Well since I only had to use an old sweater and cut it down to size I thought that I might be able to do it.  All in all I would give myself a B+.  It is totally adorable on her, but I unfortunately made it a little too tight.  

Here is what I started with.

Cutting it down.

Sewing, sewing, sewing

It's so cute.

She looks adorable in it.  I just wish it wasn't so tight.  I couldn't get a decent picture of her in it.  So this is all you get for now.

White Chocolate Cherry Shortbread Cookies

Oh my gosh!!!  These cookie are absolute heaven!  I can't stop eating them.  Here is a great new cookie recipe to enjoy.

1/2 cup maraschino cherries, drained and chopped

2 1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup cold butter

12 oz. white chocolate baking squares, finely chopped

1/2 tsp almond extract

2 drops red food coloring (optional)

2 tsp shortening

Red sugar crystals

Combine the flour and sugar and mix well.  Cut in cold butter until the mixture is fine crumbs.  You're supposed to use a pastry blender, but Ella Bella killed mine so I ended up using my metal whisk which worked just fine.  Stir in cherries and four ounces chopped chocolate.  Stir in extract and food coloring.  Knead into a smooth ball.Shape dough into 3/4" balls and place 2" apart on ungreased cookie sheet.  Using the bottom of a glass dipped in sugar flatter balls to 1 1/2".  Bake @ 325 degrees for 10-15 minutes.  13 minutes was perfect in my oven.  Cool for 1 minute on baking sheet and then transfer to a cooling rack.

In saucepan, combine 8 ounces of chocolate and shortening.  Stir on low heat until melted.  Dip half the cookie in chocolate and sprinkle the edges with red sugar crystals.  Place on wax paper until cookie is set.  Makes about 5 dozen.

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One More Little Project

I have one more little project that I finally did today.  The stuff has been sitting in my craft closet for months and I'm just now getting around to finishing it.  I figured I couldn't let the whole month of November go by without showing it off.  Enjoy!

I'm linking up to the "its so very creative" party.

Give Thanks Banner

Today I'm participating in the NewlyWoodwards Dare To Do It Yourself Party.  This week the dare is Dare To... Be Thankful.  I made this cute little banner by cutting out some felt to the size I wanted, gluing on some cute scrapbook paper and topping it off with some chipboard stickers.  I finished it off by hot gluing the felt to some ribbon, gluing on a few leaves and adding some ribbon.  It turned out cute I think, not really what I was imagining, but I don't think I have the tools to do what I wanted to do... oh well.  I was pretty lucky to have everything on hand already except the chipboard stickers and those only cost me $1 in the Target dollar bins.  Gotta love the dollar bins!  Head on over to the party and see what other crafty people are doing.

Sunday Photo Shoot

Yesterday both kids were in a pretty good mood, so what did I do? I whipped out the camera and we had a mini photo shoot.  Aren't they so cute in their matching church clothes. I promise I didn't actually plan it that way; it just happened. I couldn't believe that both kids were clean, dressed cute and matching and happy.  Of course towards the end of it Ella wouldn't even look at the camera anymore and Cameron was crying, but oh well, I got cute pics.  I know I'm a bad mom for spoiling the good mood, but I think I can live with that.

Ella has started walking around the house while talking on her phone.  She likes to carry her baby while doing this.  It's the funniest thing to watch.

I love it when they're both so happy.

Ella wasn't so sure about Cameron sitting on her lap.

What a handsome little man.

I can't believe how fast she is growing up.

Cameron rolled over for the first time from his tummy to back.

Such a happy little guy.  Don't let him fool you though because this cute little guy quickly turned to this...

Hehe... I told you I was a bad mom.

Christmas Inspiration

I am really looking forward to the Christmas season this year and what better way to start celebrating than by perusing Pottery Barn, BHG and Restoration Hardware.  There have been so many inspiring photos floating around in magazines and on the internet that it has been hard to narrow down what I want to do this year, but I think I've managed to do that.  I also managed to find a "few" projects to do.  Here is a sampling of what I'm thinking.  I'm all about sparkle this year.  I think these photos will help you see my vision.

Oh you can bet that I already have everything needed for this project...

...now I just need to decide what color I want.

Oh that would look good on our porch.

Oooh Ahhh!  I love this little birdy's sparkle.  You might find a few of these on my tree this year.

Oh how I love these ornaments, but at $16 each I don't think even one is in my budget.

Isn't she pretty.

I'm completely mesmerized by this photo.  I could just stare at it.

I don't have a pretty chandelier, but I could certainly hang that from my light fixture.