Merry & Bright

 I'm dreaming of a White Christmas.

Just like the ones I used to know.

 Where the tree tops glisten and children listen

to hear sleigh bells in the snow.

 I'm dreaming of a White Christmas.

With every Christmas card I write.

 May your days be Merry & Bright

 And may all your Christmases be white.

 White Christmas is one of my very favorite Christmas movies and this year I decided to decorate my mantels in honor of the movie.

We're hoping for a White Christmas this year!

Let It Snow...

On Our Christmas Tree

 My husband and I have had the same Christmas tree since 2004.  We figured it was about time to invest in one that hopefully will last through our boys childhood.  We decided on a tree from Home Depot.  It is a Martha Stewart brand and I would highly recommend it to anyone.  It is just beautiful and super full. We love it. 

I've always wanted a Snowflake tree, so this year I found creative ways to be frugal, yet make it pretty.  Now, I know it's kind of sparsely decorated by some standards, but we have many years ahead to collect snowflake ornaments.  Don't worry, all the ones we've collected as a family in the years past still hang on a tree that decorates our kitchen.  I could never do without those sentimental ones.  I'll share that tree with you at a later time. 

 This is a glass glitter sign that I picked up at Hallmark after Christmas last year.  I love after Christmas sales. This was only $3.50. 

 Our son Jaxon and I made these faux snow-filled ornaments.  I will write up a separate tutorial on these super, simple guys.

 When doing a themed tree, sometimes you can get away with an inexpensive filler ornament.  Like these cute, sparkly snowflakes that come in a pack of 12 for around $2.50 at Walmart.  You can't beat that price.

 This was also a Walmart find.  I just love the texture and how big this snowflake is.  Perfect for a Snowflake tree.

 This little guy is from a wreath-making class I took several years ago.  It also holds faux snow and is really glittery on the top.  It fits perfectly with the tree.

 The hardest part for me is picking the perfect tree topper.  I'm a star kind of person.  So, when I found this at a local thrift store for only $3.99(it is metal and very heavy) I just had to have it for our new tree.

Obviously, you can see many other ornaments on the tree, all of which come from either thrift stores or the dollar store.  Making something look elegant doesn't always mean having to spend a ton of money.  Frugal can be just as beautiful. 

Meet Our Elf Friend...

Sparky

 Last night my husband read Elf On The Shelf to our boys.  Our oldest son Jaxon said he hoped that an elf would show up at our house this year. 

To his surprise this morning...one did.  Jaxon and Easton named him Sparky. 

Jaxon had the BEST reaction ever.  As soon as he saw him in the tree, he became all teary eyed and said his legs were shaking.  I just about broke down in tears watching his reaction. 

Here he sits perched up on the tree. 

This day has, so far been filled with a million questions about Sparky. 

I hope Sparky doesn't cause too much mischief in our house....we shall see!

Pine Cone Garland

*Revisited

I'm sorry for being very absent lately!  We've just been so busy, I have not had time for any crafting whatsoever!  So, I thought I'd share a post from the past.  Hope you enjoy and I promise, I will have creative posts to share with you soon!

Today I have the easiest garland ever!  Find some pine cones and some twine...

 tie the twine around the tip of the pine cone...

 and that is it.  How easy was that?!  You could use this for Thanksgiving or Christmas.  You could even attach pictures of things you are thankful for in between the pine cones with clothespins.  Cute, right! 

Thanksgiving is already next week.  I'm so excited.  I love this time of year.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Q: What kind of mistake does a Ghost make?

A: A BOO BOO

Hope everyone has a safe and Happy Halloween!!!

Enjoying Life

 “Life is full of beauty.

 Notice it.

 Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind.

Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams.”

~Ashely Smith

Life doesn't get much better! 



BOWAboards

 Last night my brother-in-law called me up and told me about a new venture him and his wife are taking...

BOWAboards. 

Several months back, Gavin and Brooke made thier own headboard.  Below is the one they made for themselves.  Just recently, they decided to take their talents to ETSY to try to sell their creations. 

Isn't if cute!  I love it. 

So, what does BOWAboards stand for?  When Gavin told me, I was absolutely flattered. 

BOWA=Best Of What's Around.

How cool is that?! 

I just had to give two of my favorite people a shout out for their new business venture and hopefully get them some traffic on thier ETSY page. 

You can visit BOWAboards

 {HERE}

and check out the different patterns that are available. 

Super cute stuff.  

Go check it out, NOW!

The Bats Have Taken Over

 For the third year in a row, I've let a corner of our home be taken over by bats. 

 Our boys love it.  Not only is it cheap, but it's an easy way to dress up an area of your home for Halloween. 

Find a bat pattern that you like, print and cut it out, trace it onto $1 black poster board, cut them out and hang them up.  Easy, easy. 

Let some little ones flutter inside of a lampshade too.  It's fun when you turn on your lights at night. 

Happy 6TH Birthday Jaxon

10.11.12

Happy 6TH Birthday to our oldest son, Jaxon! 

 I went into labor with him at noon on October 10, 2006 and had him at 6:27 PM on October 11, 2006.  He was just waiting to share his day of birth with his Great Grandpa Norris. 

He's been the easiest going, most friendly little guy since the day he was born. 

We love you Jaxon Norris. 

Happy 6TH Birthday

If The Shoe Fits

 I want to share a quick tutorial on how we made the Witch Shoes for our Hocus Pocus mantle. 

All we did (I say we because my Husband did all the cutting out) is draw a simple witch shoe template.  I found inspiration by searching Google.  I traced it on some plywood and my Husband cut it out.

 My Husband sanded down the rough edges and then I gave it a coat of plain 'ol black acrylic paint.

 We taped it off in the pattern we wanted for the stockings and painted it in white and...

 green.  I didn't worry too much about it looking perfect because it was going to get sanded again.

Here is the end result!  They turned out just how I wanted them. 

Perfectly wicked!

Thanks to my Husband for all his help. 

Lori & Largent

 Two weeks ago, we attended a very special wedding.  One of my Husband's co-workers, Linda has a son that was getting married and we offered up our help with anything they needed.  Several weeks prior to the wedding, Lori and Largent hosted a fun wedding craft night to complete all the decor and favors. 

Everything was just adorable.  Not only was the whole wedding beautiful, but so is the happy couple. 

I just wanted to share a few photos of the decor and set-up and at the end of the blog post I will have a link where you can take a peek at the photographer's photos.  You have to see them.  They turned out gorgeous!

 The yard backs up to a wheat field...how appropriate to have hay bales to sit on instead of chairs!

*note that you cannot see the field behind as the area we live in was saturated in smoke from surrounding fires.

 Super cute photo booth!  Largent and Lori's colors were turquoise and purple.

 Fun & Games

 How cute is this idea...if you toss a bean bag and hit the bell, the bride and groom had to kiss!

 The yard was full of lanterns and white lights. 

 One of the easiest and frugal ways to direct your guests to a certain area at an outdoor wedding...chalkboards!

On the way up to the receiving line, there was a photo time line for the bride and groom.  What a fun idea!

Now if you are at all curious what the bride, groom and ceremony looked like, you can follow the link to

Ange Movius Photography

 {HERE}

I promise, you'll want to see these photos. 

To Lori and Largent:

thank you for letting us be a part of your special day.  A happy marriage and life together. 

"It's Just A Bunch Of Hocus Pocus"

 Yesterday, we started digging out all of our Halloween decor and I sat staring at the shelves on our wall not knowing what to do with them this year.  I asked my husband what he thought.  He said, "do a witch theme!"

I didn't really have anything Witchy in my Halloween buckets, but I was not willing to back down from a challenge.  The first thing that came to mind was one of our favorite Halloween movies,

HOCUS POCUS.

It was perfect.  I've had the Spells book for years and I knew that would be perfect to build around.

 Of course we had to make a sign that says HOCUS POCUS, so we went along the lines of a Spell book.  We ripped out some pages of an old book and cut them into a fun shape.  I used a sharpie to spell out the words and punched two holes at the top of each.  We strung it up with some thin twine and that's it. 

 It probably took about 40 minutes to complete it.  You could use this for any holiday and add embellishments you'd like.

 This chalkboard drawing was inspired by a blog post by Michael@ Inspired Charm. You can find the original blog post {HERE} You have to check it out.  His drawing is 100 times better than mine.

 It never hurts to add in some organic elements.  I love these greenish/gray pumpkins.  The color works perfectly with the theme.

 As always the Dollar Store crows fit in with any Halloween decor.

 The Shoes!!  I love these things.  I knew we had to have some witch shoes, so I got to drawing and my sweet husband cut them out for me.  I will have a separate tutorial on how we made them.

Well, what do you think?  Did I live up to the challenge?  Is it Witchy? 

I think I pulled it off OK. 

I love, love the month of October and all the Halloween hype that comes with it.

Hope this inspires you to create a festive Halloween display in your home.

I linked up:

Craftberry Bush

Under The Table And Dreaming

Homework

Not Just A Housewife

Uncommon

Someday Crafts

Southern Lovely

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