Its The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

 With the kids jingle belling

And everyone telling you "Be of good cheer"

It's the most wonderful time of the year

CHRISTMAS is my favorite holiday.  So to begin the holiday I wanted to share another word collage I put together and a couple ideas to display it.   Go to picnik.com and make your own, or you can use mine! 

• If you go to picnik.com you must be a member with a premium account.  It is only $24 a year, or $2 a month.  Trust me it is so worth it! 
• Once you are a member upload a picture and change the exposure so that you have a white background to work with!  Start adding the text and images you want.  The possibilities are endless! 
• Once your creation is complete go back to the edit tab and crop around your image. 
• Save to your picture file.  *Make sure to change the name so that it does not erase your original picture.*
• You can also put it on your desktop (we are always on our computers).  Or you can print it out, and put it in a frame for a quick and easy decoration!  I will post a picture of this simple project for you on Friday!  Its girls night tonight and I am so excited to show the girls this fun idea! 

CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN coming up Wednesday!  I hope you are as excited as I am!

Give Thanks

I made this on picnik.com.  I am a bit in love with this site.  Go check it out and make your own collage of words for the Holidays!  I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Something to remember

Here is a little something we all need to remember during the busy holidays!

"Women need real moments of solitude and self-reflection to balance out how much of ourselves we give away." ~ Barbara De Angelis

Give yourself a break every now and then to relax a little.

Coming up next Monday: A fun idea for your Christmas countdown this year!



Chili for those chilly days

I have to say this recipe from My Kitchen Cafe is her best find yet!  She has some amazing recipes herself, but this was a great one from a friend of hers!  Save this for a nice cold day, it will warm you up instantly!  I will definitely be featuring her more! 

Creamy White Chilifrom Tori M.

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 medium onion, chopped

1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon oil

2 cans (15 1/2 ounces each) Great Northern Beans, rinsed and drained

1 can (14 1/2 ounces) chicken broth

2 cans (4 ounces each) chopped green chilies (if you like less kick, add just one can)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup whipping cream

In a large saucepan, saute chicken, onion and garlic powder in oil until chicken is no longer pink. Add beans, broth, chilies and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in sour cream and cream. Garnish with fresh cilantro, if desired. Serve immediately. This is especially good served with tortilla chips. Makes about 6 servings.

Coming up two weeks: Magnetic Christmas countdown ( I am so excited for this project, I bought everything for it a month ago)!

Enjoy your weekend and have some of this delicious Chili!

Book of the Month

I have to tell you how much I love this book!  A mystery with a bit of ROMANCE added!  It is a series which makes it even better.  Eight books so far in this amazing series (I just finished the 7th).  It is an LDS novel, not all the books I chose will be LDS!  READ it you will love it!  Here is a little description about the book for you!

Hearts in Hiding: Pregnant, widowed and working at a job she hates, Kate Singleton doesn't think things can get worse. Then she finds out that the people who killed her husband are now trying to kill her. She is put in the FBI's witness protection program and Mark Iverson, an FBI agent, is assigned to protect her. They are married in name only and move to the small Georgia town of Haggerty where they are nearly smothered with Southern hospitality.

Overwhelmed trying to organize?

I have been on the verge of going crazy.  The reason?  We live in an apartment with great storage space, but we tend to just throw everything in random places!  I was trying to think of ways to organize our disaster, when I came across this cute blog by Sarah @A Little of This-A Little of That!  She not only has great ideas for your home decor, but she also had this post about organizing your pantry.  Her tips can definitely be used around your whole home! 

Tips for organizing YOUR space:

• Take everything out of your pantry/cabinets, and start fresh.
• Have all labels on cans, bottles, etc face outward.  It looks clean and organized.
• Get can risers (or MAKE them) for canned goods.  It makes a huge difference!
• LABEL everything.  Even if you think it's silly, it will help you stay organized.
• Buy baskets to put the pesky stuff in.  I used baskets for all my baking odds and ends (vanilla, baking powder/baking soda, food coloring, chocolate chips)
• Paint can do wonders.  It really brightened up my space.
• Be consistent in putting stuff back where it goes!

Here's a quick run down of what I did to transform and organize my pantry:

* Take everything out of pantry (for a fresh start)

* Install new upper shelf

* Re-paint all shelves (Valspar Arctic White-semi gloss finish)

* Paint walls of pantry (Valspar Butterfly Bush-satin finish)

I really dislike having no color on the walls.  

Off to Lowe's I happily went to buy lumber, and some paint!

Here is a finished shot:

                                                                Check out the enitre post!

Easy as 1, 2, 3

Remember my comment about my obsession with candles?  Well here it is! I needed some Thanksgiving decor for my home, so I thought why not decorate the plain candles I already have?  (instead of spending 4 or 5 bucks on a decor candle.)

•  First, choose some plan candles you have around the house.  If you don't have any go to Dollar Tree or Walmart (only $1 to $2 each). 

• Second, find free Clip Art online.  Print, and cut! I painted my turkey brown to give it a silhouette look.  I also used my mom's Cricut for the Christmas cut outs.  That is definitely the best option if available.

• Third, put a little Mod Podge on the candle and then stick your image on.  Add a bit more Mod Podge on top for a protected finish!

• Final product: A fun decoration for your home, or a gift for a loved one!  You decide!

P.S.  I found the candle holders at the Dollar Tree.  I needed some coasters and these work perfect!  I found some Clip Art leaves, added a little Mod Podge and Waaa Laaa!  (My dad thought they were real leaves!)



Coming Up Thursday!

November is definitely the month to get ready for Christmas.  This is it, there is no slacking from here on out.  I have a fun, yet simple project to make your home a cozy place!  My obsession with candles gave me the idea!  A decorating idea, or a gift!

While you're waiting for the next fun project:  A little treat for the Thanksgiving Season!  I made them for the Halloween weekend, but this can definitely be a treat that keeps on giving!  Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cookies, a great recipe from Studio 5.