Decorating for Chirstmas

Have you put up your Christmas decorations yet?   I have my tree up, but I need to get the rest of my decorations out.  Here is a little inspiration for you to get your house looking festive.  These are a few of my favorite decorations and party favors from HGTV's site.

Use a metallic spray paint on an inexpensive wreath to add a little glamour to your house.  It will work well with your New Year's Eve party as well.

I currently have a blue and silver combination for my Christmas tree and decorations.  I am looking to change it next year to the more traditional color scheme, especially now that I have a young son who's just learning about all the festivities.  I love this rustic tree.  It has a simple yet understated elegance about it that's just very appealing to me.

 Following the same idea of simple (and neutral) elegance, the look of this living room is another great example.

Love the use of the traditional color scheme for this front door.  Even the lighted outdoor present decorations match and will shine at night.

Beautiful and delicious party favors = Chocolate-covered Oreos.  According to HGTV, they are easier to make than they look... I sure hope so because I sure hope mine turn out like this!

These are the instructions on the site: "Simply cut a round piece of a chocolate-transfer sheet featuring a coordinating design (available at baking supply shops) to fit the bottom of a straight-edged flexible cupcake tin. Pour some melted chocolate on top and chill until set. Add an Oreo cookie, then pour more melted chocolate on top to cover the cookie. Chill until set and remove from the molds to reveal a beautiful and tasty treat."



 Such a cute idea for a party favor- your very own Christmas tree!

Gingerbread Cardinal Cookies

How was everyone's Thanksgiving?  I had a nice and relaxing week- much needed I may add.  However, it's really good to be back to blogging, as I miss creating, finding, and sharing ideas with you.

I personally LOVE this time of year!  I get into the holiday spirit and think it's so wonderful!  My 2 favorite animals used for decorations are deer and cardinals.  Maybe it's because of my Midwest upbringing and it reminds me of home growing up?

Whatever the reason, I just love them.  So when I saw this cardinal gingerbread cookie from Sweetopia's site, I knew instantly I had to get the recipe and share it.  They look amazing and I've got to try out my own batch this season.

Click here to get the instructions for these wonderful Christmas cookies.

Free Printable: December Calendar

I'm so excited for this holiday season!  I've always LOVED Christmastime anyway, but now having a son, it's going to be a hundred times better.  Tyler is going to be so much fun this year.  We had a great time at the Halloween party we went to.  Now I'm going to love to see him open his presents and how excited he gets.  I can't wait! 

So here's the December calendar.  I wanted to get it out before everything gets hectic around holiday time.  I am also trying to get time in to create next year's calendars so I have at least a few done at once.

 CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD YOUR DECEMBER CALENDAR

No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie

I thought a pie recipie would be appropriate to share during this time of year.  It's one of my favorties: Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie, Yum!

One of the best things about this pie is that it's one of the easiest pies you'll ever make.  You don't even have to bake!  The directions on how to make the crust includes baking, but you can always pick up a ready-made one at the store.  It's a great option when your oven is already working non-stop.

The recipe is from Martha Stewart.  Click here for the directions.

Free Printable: Letter to Santa

Are you in the holiday mood yet?  Here's a little something to help.  Print this out for your kids to write their letter to Santa.  Tyler is too young this year, but once he starts writing his letters, I thought it would be a cute keepsake to put in his baby book each year.

If you are on Scribd, click here to go to my page to download your letter and add me for future printables. Otherwise, you can download it by clicking the link below.

If you are happy to get this free printable, please like me on facebook.  And feel free to share with anyone you think might want a copy. 

Download the Letter to Santa printable here

Ideas For Boys Rooms

I don't know about you, but I have a hard time finding kids rooms that I really like.  You see such amazing pictures of nurseries all over the internet, but not as many big kids rooms, especially for little boys.

Below are some rooms/ideas I found on HGTV that I liked:

I love the world traveler feel to this boys room.  The map wallpaper is a good idea for an accent wall, and I love the mirrors that look like port holes. 

This one is very clean and simple looking.  I like the light stripes on the walls and the elephant statue adds a fun touch. Also did you notice the tree bookcase on the right wall?

I love the blue and white color combo. The drawers and bookshelves around the beds are great for storage.  But what's not to love when your little boy has an awesome play area underneath his bed?

The outside is painted in a bold red.

The inside has storage and toys galore.  What a fun idea for a boys room or kids play area.  There weren't any pictures showing the room that I could share but I thought these were too fun not to share by themselves.

And last of all, here are bookcases that have the back painted.  I'm sure you've seen this before, but I liked the color combo in this one.

High Tea Party

Wow, just wow.  This picture is so amazing, it's just like it's pulled right out of a fairy tale.  It sends you warm feelings too at a time it's getting cool out- even in Florida!  Click here to see more on Sweet Designs, a blog by Amy Atlas.

Have a magical weekend!

Mermaid vs. Pirates Birthday Party

There are so many fun ideas in this party it's hard to know where to begin.  Jen, the owner of the site Bloom, has twins and so she created this party for them both to enjoy. 

On the mermaid side of the island they made: 

• mermaid necklaces out of "pearls," 
• wrote messages in a bottle and 
• decorated treasure boxes.  

On the pirate cove side of the party they had:

•  sword fighting
• walking the plank and
•  digging for buried treasure. 

 But what I really loved was the treasure hunt where the young mermaids and pirates earned their treasure.  A treasure hunt is so great because kids enjoy it and it's good for all ages.  Plus look at the treasure hunt sheet Jen created, it's just too cute!

Click here to see more details on this party and while you're there, find more great ideas from Jen.  She thinks of all of the details. 

Cute Polar Bear Treats

As you know, creating cute desserts goes hand in hand with getting all the decorations set up for your party... and they have to match. So today's post does just that.

 Yesterday, I posted about 3 invitations that I recently created.  These super cute polar bear rice crispy treats will match the arctic party invitations perfectly.  Now, I just need to find penguin treats for this party that are also too cute to resist.

These adorable polar bears come from the site Hungry Happenings.  If you remember I did an earlier post on candy melts that featured this site also, the site owner, Beth, has such wonderful ideas.  Click here to get the instructions for the polar bear treats.

3 Party Debuts

Today is a party debut day!  Here are the parties I've been working on:

 

I made the airplane party for my little guy's second birthday. He already loves planes! He points to them in the sky every time they pass and then will wave bye bye to them. It's too cute. He's also got two airplane toys that he likes to make "fly."

  

 I have the invitations up in my Etsy shop now.  The invitations are printable so you will be able to print as many as you want.  They are formatted 2 5x7 invites on a page. For the watermelon invitations, you can pick one color or you can have a combination that includes one of each color.

The parties will shortly include:

• Personalized Invitations
• 2.25" Cupcake Toppers
• Happy Birthday Banners
• 2.25" Favor Tags
• Food Signs
• Personalized Welcome Sign 
• Cupcake Wrappers
• Thank You Cards

5 Great Thanksgiving Centerpieces

There are a ton of ideas posted online for Halloween and Christmas, but I don't see quite as many ideas for Thanksgiving.  I love Thanksgiving (my mom was born on Thanksgiving, and she's one thing I'm definitely thankful for in my life). The table is the center of this holiday so I found some ways to decorate it.  Here are 5 of my favorites:
 

This first one is so simple, yet it still looks elegant.  All you have to do is fill your hurricane vases with hazelnuts, walnuts, or pecans according to Good Housekeeping.  Plus a little bit of greenery adds a touch of color.  I think acorns could also look nice and if you don't want to go hunting for them, they have acorn fillers at the store.

I found this next one on Savy Housekeeping, who sited Domino magazine as featuring this setup.  This is an easy one too, but adds some drama by using the pheasant feathers.  It's not a traditional look, but I really like it.

By The Way, does anyone else miss Domino as much as I do?  It was one of the few magazines I have ever subscribed to but they closed down.  I have been so sad since.  They had such amazing ideas in that magazine.

 

The great thing about this centerpiece from HGTV is that it's neutral and would match any decor.  Just add some seed pods, pine cones, and nuts around the ivory pillar candles.

Now on to some color.  I love the way tall centerpieces look, but not for Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a personal, family-oriented holiday so low centerpieces work much better because can talk with your guests easier, without having to worry about the flowers being in the way.

This one's from HGTV and it's easier to duplicate than it looks.  You will need a long, shallow vase to fill with the flowers and greenery.  Make sure they are cut short and allow sprays of the greenery or berries to spill over the sides.  To get the mounded effect, slide leafy branches along the vases' sides. For more of their centerpieces, click here.

And last of all is a table that is featured on Pottery Barn.  They have these mercury pumpkins for sale, but you could also make your own, like the Halloween pumpkins I featured, click here to see the post again, they are the first ones.  The napkins, candlesticks, leaves, and fruit on the plates all give festive little touches that add up to complete the look.

Chocolate Marshmallow Cups

I found these yummy treats on one of my favorite new sites, A Subtle Revelry.  And you can make these chocolate marshmallow cups in just 3 easy steps!  How great is that?

Adding peanut butter or maybe even the Philadelphia Milk Chocolate Indulgence Cream Cheese (for a truffle taste?) sounds good too.


Click here to go to the site and get your instructions.  While you're there be sure to check the site out for other great ideas.   

Watermelon Party Cupcake Toppers

Here's one of the project's I've been working on lately.  I currently have several in the works and want to start sharing them with you.  The first is the watermelon party.  I took a quick photo of the cupcake toppers, but there are several items in the collection that I will post later.