Happy Holidays

I am happy to report there is no excuse quite like hosting Thanksgiving

to justify getting the new chairs you dreamed of....

I fell in love with these metal chairs from World Market- and I am loving them with the farmhouse table.

Showing off our aprons, apple pie, and vintage glass sodas for everyone to enjoy....

I love our family's little traditions (can you say a tradition is little when you come from a family of 14?)

Tables ready for guests, and cousins ready for pie (before dinner was ready).

After a day of Black Friday shopping and lunching with mom and my big sister,

It's time to prepare for Christmas.

Can you ever have too many Santas or candles?

Over the years my Santa collection has grown to almost 30- and the silver candle holder

was an awesome "Black Friday" find at Tai Pan trading Co. 

I sort of think Black Friday is for moms to buy what they really want for themselves, before

the hustle and bustle of the season takes over.

Antique trucks tucked under the tree for the big boy of the house...

Wrapped Santas with goodies for a neighbor or two

A naughty kitty who thinks the chirping ornament is a real bird

(that kitty has broken quite a few ornaments around the house...

but why do I think it is cute?)

My favorite things of the season...music played by my family &

the nativity I bought (what a splurge back then!) the first year I was married.

It was expensive to me.... but man, I love pulling it out year after year-

I am so happy it has has survived all the years, moves and the flood.

A stairway to swag....

My favorite snowman greets the entry way

I even wove some lights in my funky junk spring decor

(eventually that will be mounted and made cool- I promise)



Wishing you the best of the season.....

....and pondering our divine nature

(one cool tidbit-  the shepherd holding the crook in this painting is my sister-in-law's dad. Jon McNaughton, the artist, is local and uses many people he knows to model.  My brother made into one also....but that is another story)

***

For now

Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas

***

Thanks for sharing the holidays with me



Love in Blog land

Before I dive in and show off my recent box of treasures from a lovely give away let me give you some back ground.  My sister brought over an issue of Somerset in Love, years ago. It was filled with gorgeous images and creations that made crazy.  To my giddy happiness it included info about the artists.  I started clicking around online to connect with a few of these women and learn more.

One artist in particular, Lee, was kind enough to answer back.  Her blog is full of everyday life and lovely images, as well as artistic endeavors.  She was an everyday mom making art and living the dream on the side.  I love it.  She is kind enough to feature links to other worthy bloggers and occasionally shower us with give aways.  She shares the ups and downs of life, making and creating the home you dream of, and much more.
I highly recommend her blog to your reading list....

BUT I entered a giveaway, and to my luckiness, I won.  My package of random treasures came today- ( I am especially excited, as I am trying to replenish my stash after the flood in my creative space!).

so many lovely things to stir creativity (thinking of Christmas tags and ornaments?)

how amazing are these sweet little bottles of glitter?

I am such a sucker for ephemera and vintage trinkets!

I believe I was shown some serious love in the world today

Thanks Lee!

A few other things around and about today

my thankful shelf



rustic turkey perched on Great Grandma's hand stitched kitchen towel



I swallowed my fear and painted this old chair for a shabby chic accent piece



found a doll with a definite history at the antique mill

(hubby didn't even blink an eye when I picked it up to buy it)



we also picked up old crates for stacking and storing

not sure if they will stay this way, but for now I am enjoying my corner

My oldest son went on his first "real" date and is now driving to school on his own

(on the right)

God will surely tire of hearing my voice now! (*H*E*L*P*!)

Life is moving fast

 I hope I can remain present

mindful

grateful

thank you for stopping by

The Right to Peacably Assemble

How can we watch what is happening and not speak up?

Or is it easier to turn off the news and tell yourself you just can't handle it

We have to handle it

We have to speak

I am a believer in individual rights

In the pursuit of the things you love

What is wrong with this sign?

When you say "We Are One"

apparently that means if have been raped, or if you have been beaten

or if you have had someone steal your laptop (ironically a symbol of the thing you are protesting against)

you can't get help...

WHY?

Because your need then ruins the cause of The ONE.

In all my days of attending rallies

and meeting other like minds

I have never seen a supply list like this

How is this okay with the donors (political highly in nature that I

am not getting into now), the media (mostly ignoring it)

and the people who think this is a good thing?

The irony of the people there....

Honestly, if they succeed in killing corporations

we lose so many great things that America is all about.

I have been reflecting on teaching my kids about freedom

Listening to local leaders speak, meeting other families

casually enjoying a children's choir, honoring

military and singing the national anthem

No threat of fighting

No drug use

No rapes, sex in tents, or even worse

Deaths.

(Are we up to 7 now with the last shooting in the recent 'protests')

What I saw was hundreds of thousands of people

exchanging hugs, handshakes, and e-mail addresses

The feeling was warm and inspiring

much different than what I see on current 'occupy protests'

I met examples at Mt. Vernon

and breathed in the spirit of freedom and humility

in memory of people who knew what it meant to sacrifice

I had to post today





We may agree that corruption has tainted an excellent system,

but we must uphold our system

we must honor freedom

we must wake up and speak

And I am thankful for my freedoms

what is left of them



think about it today

and don't be afraid to speak

Looking back on Halloween and Ode to Pinterest

Birthday, Halloween, and Pinterest...all reason to take some serious photos of life.

Sharing a few of what is going on around here.

Pinterest has an adorable pin of a simple masquerade style mask for a cocktail party- but why not add smoky eyes, gloves, and a costume dress for the Halloween party?

Around the house on all Hallow's Eve...

 the mummy is ready to greet

on the Porch

The goodies

the kiddos

(why yes, that is my son in a Bill Clinton mask....why do you ask?)

the click-and-print adorable banner off of Pinterest

I know you can't see it well, but I loved this thing during the season!

We had a great, but extremely busy Halloween Holiday..

we were greeted with snow the next day

so Christmas music is fair game, right?

Reduced to Ashes

You may rememebr my post on the recent fire that took the life of this historical building in a nearby town.

The destruction of this building seemed almost surreal,

 as it had such a history and so many memories attached. 

I also think when you have spiritual experiences somewhere it seems to attach you to that place,

make it more significant. 

 So in a way, it hurt to see that beautiful space go down in flames.

For those of you who aren't following recent local news, in our last session of conference a beautiful announcement was made by our prophet and leader, Thomas S. Monson

This building is to be saved.

It is to be rebuilt and restored.

It is not going to be a tabernacle to us anymore, but instead will be a temple.

It is ultimately receiving the highest honor it can have as a building to our people.

A friend wrote this on Facebook page~

"Our life is like the Provo Tabernacle. We're something very good and we are doing well, but God can see what we can truly become. Sometimes it just takes reducing us to ashes in order for Him to build us up again to our true potential. At the time it occurs, we may not understand why we needed to be burned, but in time we will come to see that we have become something even greater then we could have imagined"

(thanks Meghan)

I have been thinking about this a lot.  I have been wondering about the ups and downs, and thinking about the really- I mean really- painful moments. 

I wonder about truly seeing ourselves as a tabernacle of sorts, a vessel,

and seeing our lives truly as more than just day to day surviving

I can't help but wonder who I am supposed to reach

touch

inspire

connect with

and I hope I find the strength and the space and the submission

to be what I am supposed to be

Or even the strength to just be better than I am

Halloween, I'm Ready

Wow.  It's weird to plan decorations when you move to a new place,

especially after being in the first place for 16 years.

I had everything planned and mapped out,

from where I crammed my books to where I put my holiday decorations.

I pulled out my bins (thanks goodness for plastic bins- that flood demolished eveything cardboard)

and we finally got in the spirit of things around here.

I loved this idea from Pinterest- paint old frames black for a coehsive look and pop in old sppoky pictures.

.

I had downloaded some Hitchcock pictures, but ended up using family pictures from Halloweens past.

I love the way it turned out. 

The above frame I made from just cardboard, and I taped it to the frame already on the piano.

Dressed up my dress form (she scares us everytime we turn the corner)

and added a spooky "3-D" picture from the dollar store.

I probably need a few more pumpkins to liven up the porch,

but this year's "Trick or Treat" banner from Martha Stewart is one of my favorite finds.

Once again the front window is holding my creepy movie poster.

Look closely and you'll find a few creepies in the upstairs windows, too.

And there's the not so creepy critter as well.....

Now to plan the goodies for the Trick or Treater's to take home. 

I can't wait for Halloween!

Religious Print Redo

I had an empty wall above my piano that I recently filled and have enjoyed the result...

Last year we had the privilage of viewing many of Carl Heinrich Bloch's religious works at a local university.

The paintings were all stunning, and  I have had this framed print for some years.

My dad found it at a yard sale and bought it, and I was able to buy it off of him.

( he tends to get a little overstocked from yard sales and second hand stores)

It came in a gold frame, which has never done much for me.

I covered the glass (it looked complicated to pull it all apart, so I took the lazy way out)

and then I just used acrylic paint on the frame.

I really liked the sort of scratchy look that I got with one coat, so I left it at that.

It did take some dabbing and work to get the paint into the etched designs on the frame's edge,

 but it was easy and the paint dried quick.

The frame was dry and ready to hang in about 30 minutes.

After passing an empty wall for months in our new house I am actually pretty happy to have a little

new spot that feels like home.

And the vinyl wall phrase as a constant reminder isn't bad either.....

may you be inspired to

create a space today