Pine Cone Ornament Project

I'm still determined to create a baby proof Christmas tree this year!  Bitty Baby is loving the tree and I don't want to spend the holidays saying, "Don't touch.  Don't touch. No No." 

 I want her to be able to experience the wonder of Christmas as much as she can.  All of our pretty, breakable ornaments will just have to stay in their bins until next year!

Remember how I collected the four bags of pine cones at my in-laws last week?

 

Well, I had a little time today and started turning these into tree ornaments.  Right now, our tree is pretty bare with just the lights and some red mesh on it.  Since my colors are red, gold and green ... I thought the pinecones could be the gold.


So, I turned to my trusty friend ... spray paint!

I just threw some of the cones on an old sheet and started spraying.

Caramel Latte is pretty subtle, so I sprayed a few coats

The picture looks silver, but it's really more of a muted gold.

Once, the pine cones were dry, I just knotted some thin satin ribbon to make a loop.  Then, I hot glued the knot side down into the cone. 

The color of these ornaments came out so pretty and soft. Now one down, 99 to go!  Just kidding ... well, maybe 50 to go :) 

I think this project cost $2.97 for the spray paint and $.99 for the ribbon!  Maybe Big Daddy will help me glue ribbons tonight?  Now, that would be love!

I have a few more projects to finish this weekend and then I'm done decorating.  I've put myself on a deadline!  If it's not done by Sunday, it'll have to wait until next year :) .  That's part of my "Keep it simple" mantra this year! 

I still need to do the mantle and front door, then I bought this super cute Vera Bradley-esque fabric at Hobby Lobby.  It was only $2.99 a yard!  I'm going to try and make a no-sew tree skirt out of this.  Pray for me! :)

I picked up this fringe for the trim ... it kind of reminds me of Christmas tree needles

And, finally, I plan to finish this ornament wreath that I did from the Eddie Ross tutorial.  I've seen these on some awesome blogs and thought I would give it a try! 

Almost finished! Yay for Christmas!

I love Mulling Spices

I'm broadcasting to you live from the quiet and comfort of my living room.  Sister is playing at a friend's house. Bitty Baby is down for her nap.  And, I'm sitting here with a cup of hot tea and Christmas tunes on the stereo.  Bliss!

I just put some mulling spices on the stove to simmer and the house is already starting to smell like Christmas!  I just threw a couple of tablespoons in about a cup of water - so easy.

I am in love with these from Williams-Sonoma!

I love natural, simple things and this is full of cinnamon chips, orange rind, whole allspice, whole cloves, cinnamon oil, and orange oil.

These mulling spices also make yummy mulled cider.  Here is the recipe from Williams-Sonoma.  A pot of this on the stove sends holiday cheer all through the house!

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Mulled Cider

Gently simmer 1 quart apple cider and 2 TBS mulling spices for up to 20 minutes.  Remove spices and serve hot in mugs with connamon sticks, or chill and serve.

Note: Place spices in a large tea infuser or tie in a small piece of cheesecloth.

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I didn't see the tins online, but checked and they are definitely in stores.  You can find a Williams Sonoma store locator here.

Frugalista tip:  The retail price for these is $10.50 and the spices can be stored up to a year in a cool dry place.  However, these go on clearance after Christmas.  I think I paid $2 last year and stored the tins in my chest freezer outside.  These make great teacher gifts, hostess gifts, or just a happy for a sweet friend!

Frugalista Finds - Ends Tuesday ... Crazy Cheap Magazine Subscriptions from Amazon

Edit: The sale actually goes through Tuesday, December 1st.

I've been doing a little surfing on the sly today for Cyber Monday and wanted to share this crazy deal from Amazon.com

WARNING:  If you are related to me, i..e. one of my peeps ...  do not read further for fear of ruining your Christmas ... ha! :)

Through Tuesday, you can get a 1 year magazine subscription for $5.  Yes, you heard me right y'all.  $5!  Just click here for the link to amazon.com.

Here are some of the magazines that caught my eye:

Yes. $5 .... crazy!

$5 ... Uh Huh.

Yep.  $5.

That's Right.  Five Bucks

Other subscriptions are available for $10, too. Happy Shopping!

Weekend Update - It's finally Fall, Mama!

We had such a great weekend! We headed north to visit with Big Daddy's family for the holidays.  We drove up Thanksgiving morning and had the best lunch with family. The food was so good and I had two helpings of my favorite ... cornbread dressing!


Early on when Big Daddy and I were dating, this girl had to find out the answers to some crucial questions on "my list"  of requirements for that special someone.  "Do you go to church?"  Check.  "Are you close with your family?"  Check.  "Great sense of humor?"  Check.  And ... very importantly ... "What kind of dressing does your family serve for the holidays?"  Cornbread dressing. Check!


You might think I'm a little crazy, but that's a legit question around here.  My sister married into a family that doesn't make cornbread dressing and she's still trying to get over it ... 18 years later ... :).  Good thing my brother-in-law is a sweetheart! I know I'm being a little dramtic, but oh, how I love cornbread dressing.   I bet everybody has a favorite family dish for the holidays that just has to be on the table or the holidays wouldn't be the same!


One of the highlights of our weekend was my brother-in-law and future sister-in-law's engagement party.  It was so fun seeing them officially kick off their wedding plans.  We are so excited for them!


I spent two afternoons of our visit collecting pine cones in the woods at my in-laws.  I've decided not to put ornaments on the tree this year because of my sneaky little elf ...

So, I think I'm going with a "natural" theme this year.  I picked up four grocery sacks of pine cones and I'm going to use them on the tree and on some garland.  I'm sure my favorite duo, spray paint and glitter, will come into play sometime during this project, too ... ha!


While I was outside, Sister drew on the driveway with chalk.  She loves to draw and her favorite thing to draw is our family!


Here's Big Daddy ...

And Bitty Baby

I love the hair on both of these!


My in-laws' yard is always so pretty!  They have the prettiest Sasanqua that has grown into a tree, really. I think this is one of my favorite fall flowers ...

The Fall colors were really shining up there.  Big Daddy's family lives north of us, so their seasons are a little more definite than ours.  The trees were just so pretty!  

Sister was just amazed 

The leaves were falling from the trees and it was so peaceful.  As the leaves were falling, Sister started running through them, crunching and throwing leaves all the way, yelling ... "Mama, fall is FINALLY here.  It's FINALLY here!" So sweet!  

Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

Holiday Traditions - Nativity Advent Calendar

I am really excited about Christmas this year!  Sister is old enough to really understand Christmas traditions now and I don't think anyone loves this time of year in our little family more than she does! 


While both Big Daddy and I had Christmas traditions growing up, we wanted to start a couple of new ones for us.  And, we wanted those traditions to teach a little something about the real meaning of Christmas.

A couple of years ago, I ordered a Nativity Advent Calendar that I just love!  Since we're out of town, I don't have up close pics of it yet, but will add them later.

Each date pocket holds a "character" from the nativity story.  There are angels, wisemen, kings, shepherds, animals and of course Baby Jesus.  Each day, we wake up and Sister picks a pocket and adds it to the "story."  I also put a little treat in the pocket too, like a chocolate kiss or sticker. 

The only rule we have is that Baby Jesus has to go in #25 and in the manger.  I'm sure you're thinking ... duh, but things can get really interesting with a preschooler!

One thing we love about this advent calendar is that it opens up a chance for us to talk daily about the true meaning of Christmas.  So sweet!  It reminds us big kids of the story, too!  There are several options on the internet for ordering, but you can find the one pictured above here.

One of our other traditions is reading Christmas books during the holiday for bedtime. There are so many cute ones!!! Here's one of our favorites.

                             

This is the sweetest book!  Little Cub asks his Mama "Who invented Christmas?" Little Cub asks more and more and more questions like little ones do.  And, this leads Mama to talk about God versus Santa and how Jesus is the best present of all.  Love this story!  You can find it here.

I love getting new ideas, so I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone's posts about their own traditions!    Merry Christmas!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.    

Colossians 3:17

The Weekend Update - Curious George & A Great Sale

This weekend, we kicked off the holidays by heading to the country to meet up with one of our favorite monkeys - Curious George!

The event was at a local Christmas tree farm which was beautiful.  The farm grows Leyland Cypress, which are just gorgeous. 

                            

My sister and her crew grab one of these beauties every year. And, after seeing them in their natural setting, we might have to reconsider our pre-lit tree!

Some of the trees were huge!

The event was after church on Sunday, so we were creeping into Bitty Baby's naptime.  She got very, very sleepy

                        

 

At one point, we thought she might not last through much more of the fun
 

Bitty Baby's heading into "the two's" and she really started to "work it"

   

But, once we gave her a candy cane (her first ever) - she decided she wanted to stay :)

 

Sister wanted her picture made with Curious George.  This is a BIG deal, because she hasn't been a fan of characters ... EVER!  She was so excited to meet George, but it looks like she's passed on the "scared of characters" torch to her little sister.  Poor George ... I think half of the pics taken that day had a fussy little one!

 

The tree farm had an adorable Christmas store and we bought Sister a cute light-up Rudolph nose

The store had this funny sign outside that made us laugh!

                           

I think the biggest hit of the afternoon was just running around the farm and playing in the Christmas tree grove.  Sister and I played hide-n-seek between the trees, which was so much fun!  I want to live on a farm now!

                        

We played chase, too, even though I didn't have on the best shoes.  Next time, I'll have to remember to wear boots! :)

                            

Sister's favorite part, by far, was being able to RUN

                                         

And run ....

                                          

And, run!

                                           

What a great way to kick of this special time of year.  I am so excited about Thanksgiving and have so much to be thankful for, especially within my family.  God is so good!

P.S. I received an email about a great sale and thought I would pass along the info ...


Remember Nguyen Children's Clothing is having a big, big sale this week.  I find some of my favorite frugalista finds for the girls from this place!  You can link directly to their website here.