Are you in?

Phew...my annual Christmas card photo is officially over, hurried along by the early snowfall that I desperately wanted to take advantage of for its photographic possibilities. It is not an event I particularly look forward to, however, I so enjoy the end result. I have tortured myself this way for as many years as I can remember, and love looking back on the photos of Christmases past. Many have been taken as the children sat under our Christmas tree, and others in front of the mantel, whenever we had one. For some reason, I have upped the pressure on myself to be creative and photograph them in a different way each year. Perhaps it is the ever-honest voice of my husband's brother that I hear as he proclaims that "...last year's was better" or "...you can never beat the one of the boys on the front step" (when they were five and three years old),

but regardless I plan that photo with the same intensity that the "old man" in A Christmas Story bargained for a deal on a Christmas tree. Who doesn't need a little more holiday pressure??!!

The common theme (besides well wishes to friends and family) has been to show off my children...and I make no apologies for that. They represent our family best; and their father and I have yet to join them in a Christmas card photo - partly because of the logistics behind it, and partly because I want to look at the photo with sheer contentment, instead of picking apart my flaws and second guessing what to wear. I think I am like many women, who shy away from the camera, wrong or right. I also think we are misguided, and may regret our opting out of these pictorial keepsakes.

I have, on one occasion, posed for professional photos with my boys, albeit completely unintentionally. The following photos were taken when my boys were two and one yrs old. Despite our best efforts, my baby would not let me put him down, nor would he relinquish the train the photographer had given him, to coax him from my arms. Try as we did, there was no way he would pose for her, thus she suggested that I be in the photos. Despite my protests (I was not dressed for a photo session), and my shyness in front of the camera, I knew it was a losing battle: either pose, or go home empty-handed (photo-wise, of course...).

Apprehension aside, I laughed my way through the shoot as both boys "kept it real" and alternately toddled away, pulled hair (see below), acted silly or squirmed in my arms. Either way, I ended up with photos that are priceless to me, and instead of scrutinizing myself, I simply saw an adoring mother of two hopelessly cute boys. On this occasion, I was in...!!

Are you?

Please Santa...and a winner!

photo source: Country Home magazine, styled by Matthew Mead

How many of you fine adults still pounce on the Sears Wish book and flip to the toy section? Well, I do, even though I show enough restraint to allow my kids first dibs. I remember being a young girl and finally getting my hands on it and stealing away to a quiet corner to look at all the loveliness. I'd greedily put a star beside each gift I coveted, especially if it involved Barbie or Sindy. I certainly didn't get everything I asked for, but that was hardly the point. By laying claim to a particular toy, it opened up the possibility that it might find its way under our tree. Between Mum and Santa, such magic could surely unfold?

photo source: BHG.com

After my daughter had a good look through this year's edition, I curiously looked at what she had "starred". Instead of writing her name next to the toys or drawing a check mark or star, she had simply written the words: Please Santa?

~Sigh~

How can I resist such a sweet request? I jotted down the numbers of a couple of the toys that I knew she was really hoping for and from Santa they will be! My boys have moved on from such wish lists, and instead I have to pull teeth to get them to reveal a few things I can pick up for them. Santa is over for them now, at least in the truest sense. Me? I'm a believer. Like one little friend of my son's said a few years ago: "How could there be no Santa? My parents certainly couldn't afford all that stuff!!" Indeed...

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Now on to the winner of the Fairy Door: courtesy of the random number generator, PippaJo of Cottage at Wit's End is the lucky winner! Thanks to all who entered!!

The Snowball Effect...

You know how one thing leads to another? Well, so it was today. We awoke to a glorious pile of snow, and the holiday feel just snowballed from there (I know, I know...). Like I've said before, there are certain things that just have to happen to jump-start the holidays. Like when our great Canadian coffee franchise comes out with their holiday cup (a large black, one sugar please):

Speaking of hot drinks, Sophie ordered up her favourite: hot chocolate with a candy cane. Note, my snowflake mug that I brought up from one of the many bins I rifled through on Friday as I prepare myself to decorate next week. This week was all about cleaning...

Speaking of cleaning, today was good for a little more pre-holiday-decorating cleaning...in this case, it was Sophie's Barbie house that was in question. Apparently, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree: she suggested that we give Barbie a Christmas Tree! You know I was all over that!!

Speaking of Sophie, we decorated her bedroom and tree last evening. She had a great time, but still loads the tree three ornaments to a branch! She keeps me real...

And speaking of tree ornaments, I re-sized my silhouettes to fit in these ornament frames from Walmart. I made them as gifts for my mother-in-law for Christmas. I am making a set for myself, but I will glitter the frames to snazz them up!

And speaking of gifts, I gave the gift of my time and energy today: while dropping off my eldest son so he could watch a basketball game, I was blocked in by a man whose car wheels were spinning in the messy snow of the parking lot. I stopped, and he got out of his car and asked me if I "wanted a push?" Of course, I heard "Do you wanna push?" Admittedly a teensy bit taken aback, I shrugged sure... He walked closer to my car (to push) as I got out and leaned into the job of pushing his car! Puzzled, he asked, "Are you sure...?" and I told him I'd give it a try. He graciously offered to have me steer the car as he pushed, but when I realized it was a standard, I deferred. My last effort at driving a manual transmission involved repeatedly stalling and my eldest brother yelling at me...so, no thanks! Back in my position of power, I suggested (to this rather good-looking man), "Maybe we should try getting the car rockin'" Oyyy...and we just met!! To make a long story less long, I succeeded in getting the car unstuck! Who knew I had it in me? As the car wheels spun to freedom, the man unceremoniously yelled out the door, "Thanks!" and he was off. I may have been a hero, but I don't mind saying I didn't feel all that feminine doing it. I know, I know, girl power...let's just say I got back in touch with my femininity with a little therapeutic shopping!!

So that's it, in a nutshell. It started with some snow, and ended with it, too. I arrived home from my rescue mission to this:

There's nothing like a big, fat snowman to make things Christmasy!

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Don't forget to enter my Fairy Door give-away (see post below)!!

Easy Home Projects - Part Three

Painting your front door makes a big difference in the first impression your home gives. Paint your door a color that you love like orange or red. Replace your house numbers with new modern house numbers. While you’re at it, repaint your mailbox post. You could also repaint your porch railing to make over the entry way to your home.

Even if you don’t have a room in your entry way, you can create an entry way easily. All you need to do is place a bench near the front door with coat hooks above it. Put baskets underneath that pull out for quick storage of shoes and other items such as library books. Having a bench in the entry way is very convenient as well as looking good, most people find them to be quite useful.

If you want to give a room a comfortable country style make over try putting wainscoting around the room topped with chair rail. Paint it a color that is a couple of shades darker or lighter than the wall color or go bold and paint it a contrasting color.

Laminate flooring that looks like hardwood is a breeze to install. You could do a small room in one weekend quite easily. There are also stick down bathroom floor tiles that look like tile floor. If your bathroom floor is linoleum and outdated, this could really help the look.

Check back soon for the next portion of this blog.

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A Silhouette Tutorial and a Fairy Door...from me to you!!

photo source: Ladies Home Journal

I think of all the projects I have undertaken, my fairy door and silhouettes have been the most popular. Like me, many of you see the charm in whimsy, and enjoy keeping decorating light-hearted and fun, and not stressful and expensive. I have been very remiss to not respond to the call to explain how I made my silhouettes. I have seen many great step-by-step tutorials on how to create them, and again, I will not measure up to their attention to detail. I am a one day project girl. If it takes more than a day, I am less likely to do it. Basically, I bore easily and thus focus more on projects that I can complete in a flash. My silhouettes were no different...

So, here is the nuts and bolts of how to make your own silhouettes. For those needing more complex and/or detailed instruction, go here. For those who are more lazy and/or have an attention span akin to mine, sit back and take (a few) notes:

First, round up all of your subjects. If you have to bribe or threaten them to sit still, so be it. That's part of the tutorial, in my world. Have them sit on a chair, with a blank wall (I skipped this step), and stare straight ahead. I photographed my people on their right sides. This is important if you want the finished product to show left facing. Tell them no smiles are allowed - maybe they are, but mine simple sat closed mouthed (thoughts unspoken) and stared irritably into space. I photographed them from a distance of approx. 3ft away. I forget if I used the zoom feature or not, but this is an example of the shot I ended up with:

or this:

(See, they don't need to dress up!)

You may have to take a few shots to ensure all of the pictures are roughly the same "size" (i.e. look the same when you see them on your computer screen. After you are satisfied that you have your "shots", upload them to your computer, then use your printer to print them off (in colour) in the size you wish the finished project to be. My frames are 8x10 oval, so I sized them accordingly (convenient way to say I forget if I printed them off in a 5x7 size or 8x10...sorry). Do note, if your subject has curly hair, as my Sophie does, a pony-tail will be much easier to cut around and look more real.

After you have them all printed off, glue the pictures (using a scrap booking/acid free glue stick) onto acid free black card stock. Then, using small sharp scissors, cut carefully around the features of your subject's face. Now is a great time to cut away any double chins, super-sized moles... basically give your subject free plastic surgery! Of course, if the subject is a child, simply cut away...they are already perfect! Once you have your subject in silhouette form, do some doctoring to the shoulder area to make their shoulders look more authentically silhouette (see after photos below): To finish, carefully peel away the pasted on colour photo and flip over to the perfect side, which will be your completed silhouette, facing left. I adhered mine to white card stock (cut to mimic the oval paper that came with the frame), using a piece of acid-free double sided tape, then put the frame all back together and hung it on my wall. Easy peasy... I am not kidding!!

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Now, for the fun part!

I am giving away a fairy door to one of you! It is red and glittery, and very sweet, and you can simply adhere it to the inside (or outside) of your home using heavy duty, double-sided tape. Note: it is the door only; it does not have the surrounding moulding that mine has, but it is very cute anyway!! (It also measures roughly 5"tall by 2" wide).

If you would like to win, simply leave me a comment (if you don't have a blog, also leave your email address) by Tuesday morning, Nov.25th (at which time I will close comments). If you'd like to be entered twice, simly mention this give-away on your own blog (with a link back to this post) and let me know you did.

Easy Home Projects - Part Two

Paint or wallpaper one wall in your bedroom a brighter color than the others. This accent wall will make your bedroom look more interesting. Wallpapers are available in practically any texture and color you can imagine, so have fun shopping around.

If you have an old dresser you’re using somewhere in your house that isn’t very attractive consider giving it a makeover. Sand it down and paint it a bright color or stain. Add polyurethane so the color will last. Add new drawer pulls that are up to date. You may even want to makeover other pieces of furniture in the same room to match.

If you dining room chairs have fabric seats you will probably need to reupholster them at some point, because the seat fabric always seems to get dingy far before the table starts to look dingy too. Choose a stylish fabric and cut it an extra two inches wide all the way around the shape of the seat. Wrap the fabric around the seat and staple it in place.

Home offices always seem to be places where clutter loves to live. Take the time to organize all of the clutter. Investing in a few matching boxes and files will help a lot. Label everything and pay attention the layout so it will be easy to put things where they belong before clutter gets the better of the room again.

Check back soon for the next portion of this blog.

This blog is brought to you by locum tenens.

Easy Home Projects - Part One

Large home projects are daunting tasks, and often they don’t get done. But, there are plenty of small home projects that you can easily get done in a weekend, some even in a couple of hours, that can make your home look cuter. Another good thing about these small projects is that they are mostly fairly inexpensive and can be done on a budget.

Rearrange your living room furniture. Simply rearranging a room is free of course, and it can make the room feel fresh and new. Try planning out how you want to arrange the room on paper to save the time and effort of trial and error when moving things around. Think about getting rid of any extra tables or junk you don’t need, or bring in a table or accent piece from another room if you actually don’t have enough in your living room. Make sure you put the coffee table close enough to the couch to easily set drinks on it.

Adding a small shelf at eye level to a wall that doesn’t have enough pizzazz can really give a room more personality. You can use the shelf to display small framed pictures and art, candles, or some other item. You can layer them a little bit for a more interesting look, or space them a few inches apart for a modern sleek look.

Check back soon for the next portion of this blog.

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Christmastime's a Comin'

photo: Better Homes and Gardens.com

Yes, Christmas is coming, but there are a few things that have to happen before I bring out the decorations. First is my birthday (today), where I am going to enjoy being spoiled rotten by my husband and family. I am not really a presents girl, although I have already received some beauties from some friends (a glittered tree and brown, floral rubber boots), and of course, the recessed panelling that my sweet husband installed for me as my birthday present. I finished painting the front entry panelling yesterday, and I am a happy girl. For some reason, my husband has been very agreeable to my building projects lately, so to return the favour I cooked up his favourite meal yesterday: my famous meatloaf with all the trimmings! I know how to keep him happy, too, and it really does make him putty in my hands! Being the birthday girl and all, I also get my favourite meal tonight - Chinese take-out. Can a birthday get any better?

yep, they're all ours...

This weekend also calls for the annual Christmas parade in my town, and it is the official kick-off to Christmas for me. I will bring out the candy canes that I have stowed away, and on Monday I will begin the decorating process. I will then take the kids to the mall to select names from the Salvation Army tree, and they will help me pick out the gifts, one for each of their ages. I am also looking forward to Sophie's Christmas concert, as the boys have moved on to Junior High, where such a thing is no longer done...not cool, I guess.

By the way, thanks for all of your fashion advice! Heaven knows I need it sometimes, and looking at my pasty, white legs, I don't know if there is enough self-tanner on earth to darken up my gams!!

I just had to share this picture of my "baby" sleeping last night as I went in to check on her...

I will now share more Christmas inspiration to help get you into the mood for the holidays:

photo: BHG.com
photo: Pottery Barn.com

above two photos: Room Service Home

Merge Style and Function - Part Two

If you want to display your kids’ artwork, but you don’t like how it looks cluttered on the refrigerator, try a more stylish alternative. You can hang a linen covered bulletin board covered with a cute pattern or just a solid color that matches the room it is in. Hand the artwork on this with small pins. You can also hang colored string across the ceiling in rows and attach clips to it to display art work all along the ceiling.

Apply the same rules to picking out a kitchen table as discussed above for coffee table selection. Also, kitchen tables that are round can be a big plus if you have a family because it will help encourage conversation. Also, the less corners the better when you have kids in the house.

There are even paint types available today that can help you reach your design goals. Use high quality latex paint and your walls will wipe clean easily. Use magnetic primer under your paint and you can display art directly on the walls. Try a chalkboard paint in a kid’s room or a play room if they like drawing with chalk.

Carpet is probably not the best choice if you have a family. A spill can turn into a stressful cleanup that ends up staining. Hardwood flooring or even a laminate that looks like hardwood, can stand up to messes and look great at the same time.

Get a big cupboard for your living room or playroom and fill it with labeled baskets. These baskets can be used to store toys and can be easily organized. If you get cute wicker baskets you could even store them on shelving and the room would still look nice. Benches are good in playrooms or kids’ rooms too, because you can put baskets underneath for extra storage.

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Merge Style and Function - Part One

There are several things you can do to help your home look stylish when you have kids with products that will stand the test of abuse. Some of these tips can help organize and reduce clutter but they also look good.

Have a bench in your entryway. This will be where all shoes get removed. You can place a couple of baskets underneath the bench in which shoes can be stored. You can get a cute rug to go under the bench that will gather the dirt and help contain it.

Keep a basket at the landing of your stairs. Use it to hold things that you know you’ll need to take upstairs or downstairs. This way you can keep surfaces in your home clutter free without having to run up and down the stairs to put away each item individually.

Take care when you pick out your coffee table. Coffee tables tend to get dinged up quickly, so you should make sure you choose a table that is durable. If you are going to go with wood, choose a hard wood like oak and choose a table that has been polyurethaned. Steer clear of glass coffee tables, not only could they be broken during roughhousing, but they show finger prints much more easily than wood does.

Leather is a good choice for upholstery because you can wipe it clean. Leather tends to look better as it gets older too, which you can’t say about other upholstery materials. Leather is quite durable and should be able to hold up well if you have kids and pets.

Check back soon for the next portion of this blog.

This blog is brought to you by locum tenens.

Sending out an S.O.S....and a few thanks.

I am not one to gussy myself up too often, but I picked up this dress on sale last year and have yet to wear it. First of all it requires baring one`s arms, and I don`t do that very happily, especially this time of year! I did manage to pick up a silky, cotton sweater to conceal what needs concealing, and also found these shoes: I love them for all their girly charm, and although they are probably going to have my feet very mad at me, I will take one for the team! When I tried on my ensemble, my little Sophie breathed in with admiration and such excitement that her boring mum had finally donned something glitzy and a wee bit glamorous! I can actually say I am looking forward to dressing up for a change. In fact, I feel positively excited about it, if not to please my daughter alone!! But I need your help: what colour hose/stockings do I wear with it? I am not a fan of beige/nude stockings. I feel all granny when I picture them, and granny style is not what I am aiming for! So, all you fashionistas, if you actually aren`t snorting with laughter at my country bumpkin dilemma, would you give me your two cents?

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You all know I am a very bad blogger when it comes to awards. I am always happy to receive them and do try to make sure I thank the bestower as soon as I find out, but ~sigh~ inadvertently sometimes miss the chance to leave my thanks in a timely fashion, and even forget altogether! I am horridly forgetful and lazy about passing them on, and have stated before that I thus do not deserve any awards at all!! However, some of you have either overlooked my faults and/or have been kind enought to forgive me and awarded me them anyway. I am very grateful for your kindness and have spent altogether too much of my Saturday evening frantically going back through the comments and my emails for signs of unrecognized awards. If I have forgotten anyone, please let me know, and I will make amends...somehow! Without further adieu, I hereby thank the following:

Madeline of Newly Nesting awarded me this one:

Her blog is a treat and I love her approach to sharing her life, home and thoughts and tips on nesting.

Lanette at Cottage Elements and Cheryl of Cheryl`s Fascinating Finds and Karin of The Style Sisters passed on the Kreative Blogger award to me. These ladies are all on my must-read list and I have enjoyed all of the inspiration they share.

The following awards were given to me by: Stephanie at The World of Princess S.

Stephanie has sweetly given me two...she really must not have heard how bad I am at passing them on...Check out her blog...she is a great writer, and you all know I love a blog with great writing.

And in true bad blogger form, I will put off awarding the honours until another day. I promise!!

Decorate with Ornaments

Christmas tree ornaments can be used creatively in a variety of ways for decorating, and the best part is the low cost.

Buy two medium or large clear ornaments and remove the metal part on top that attaches to a hook. Fill the ornaments at least half way with spices to use in hot chocolate or egg nog. One could be filled with ground nutmeg, and the other could be filled with ground cinnamon for example. Other options would be vanilla or chocolate powder, whatever you’d like really. Now, cover the openings with squares of cheesecloth. Secure the cheesecloth around the opening with silver or gold string.

Large clear ornaments can also be used to fill with bright candy, peppercorns, popcorn kernels or any other bright colored small food item. Tie bits of ribbon to the loops meant to use hooks in for hanging.

Use small sized festively colored ornaments for decorating the fridge. Tie two together using red ribbon, and hang them over a metal fridge clip that is clipped to a holiday photo or card.

Small ornaments also look cute used as decorations on cupcakes, one small ornament per cupcake.

You can make a cute centerpiece for a table using ornaments stuck on wooden skewers displayed in a vase. Use pieces of your Christmas tree in between ornaments.

Small ornaments can be tied in pairs around napkins with cute ribbon to create unique place settings for parties. Write the guests name who is to sit in each place on small pieces of paper and slip the pieces into clear ornaments, one for each pair in a setting.

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Show me your urns!!

Outdoor decorating has to be my favourite part of "decking the halls". I love that the outdoors offers up a veritable blank canvas that is less likely to get messed up on a daily basis, and the scheme can be tweaked quite readily each year. Something as simple as distributing your lights differently, taking a more natural approach with elements from nature, picking up a unique wreath from a local department store, and (my favourite approach) switching up what you place in your urns each Christmas, can provide just the originality that you may be seeking for your outdoor holiday setting. One of my favourite approaches to this was in my own snow ball mounds I crafted for my urns last year. A simple grapevine cone, some styrofoam balls dusted with some faux snow, and a hot glue gun was all that it took to create these fun additions.

Dressing up your urns can be as simple as using boughs and winter berries, dogwood branches, or winter kale. Grapevine balls like the one below, entwined in mini white lights have graced my urns more than once.

Evergreen topiaries and grapevine trees left au naturel, or festooned in twinkly lights, are an elegant addition to your outdoor decor.

If you want to add glamour and sparkle, you can also employ the sparkle of a gazing ball or two. Your urns will present with importance if only you let them. Look around at what you have in your decorating arsenal. View your urns as the perfect pedestal to showcase your holiday decorating style and they will serve as the perfect holiday sentries to your outdoor Christmas scene.

******all photos (except top photo): Better Homes and Gardens.com