~birthday boy~

Happy birthday to the sweetest, craziest, most wonderful boy I know!

I love you so much!

Happy 9th birthday Cody!

xoxo

~the best of 2011~

 2011 was a great year.

I thought I'd take you month by month of some of my favorite posts of  2011, starting with January.

Above I showed you how to disguise a ugly cooler in a large Ikea basket.

This is great for parties and large gatherings.

You can view the post here.

 In February I took apart a old trunk that was passed on to us when my husbands sister suddenly passed away. After sitting in our yard for years it was starting to deteriorate.

I salvaged some of the wood and made this sign.

The saying is appropriate for how we feel about Debbie.

View the post here.

 In March I teamed up with The Polished Pebble to create 

inexpensive wall art out of old botanicals.

View the post here.

 In April I found this fabulous ship painting at a thrift store.

One of my best scores!

You can see the post here.

 In May I was honored to be able to help with the interiors on a house that was rebuilt after the previous one burnt to the ground after a horrific murder took place.

You can read the tear jerking story here.

 In June I showed you a quick 5 minute makeover on our hallway.

Click here to read the post.

 In July I made a whole bunch of picture frames using reclaimed wood.

To see them all, click here.

 Using reclaimed barn wood and old sign letters, I made this great big huge sign in August.

It's one of my favorites.

Click here to see the post.

 In September we welcomed a new puppy to our family!

Click here to meet baby Harley.

 These DIY key hooks were fun!

To learn how to make your own using baby blocks, click here.

 Our Thanksgiving table scape.

Click here to see this post.

And finally, in December I showed you how to make this DIY paper leaf garland.

Click here to read more.

~the evolution of a wall~

 This post is a bit embarrassing.

I was on pinterest last night and clicked on the words 

"my sweet savannah" 

A few photos came up of our home and I had to laugh at all the

 different ways our living room wall has changed!

I seem to not be able to sit still.

The photo above was taken right after I painted the cedar walls.

 I was going for a simple clean lake side beach look.

 Then came fall and I changed out the books in the wire basket for pumpkins and gourds.

I added pillows to the couch with a bit more color, and had pops of color in mums and dahlias. 

I must have taken down the oar because it was a bit too beachy for fall.

 Then came the collage look.

I loved this, don't know why I changed it actually! 

The photo above shows a sunburst mirror in the center.

I liked it for all of about a week and then thought it looked a bit too blingy.

So, I made these signs instead. 

I thought it fit in perfect with all of our family photos.

 Then I went to this place called Restoration Hardware {ever heard of it?}

and got sucked in.

BIG TIME.

I walked out with a new mirror and 2 new sconces.

I guess I was going for a little bit of a natural/rustic look here.

Now we have a current photo.

There's a place in my brain that shouts symmetry and order and other crazy things

which brought me to this wall display.

I REALLY love this one!

I blogged about it before, how I got my hands on old Crystal Lake photos,

 {our neighborhood}

from the early 1900's, and copied them and framed them in Ikea Ribba frames.

So, heres my question to you.

Am I the only one that does this?

Please say I am not alone!

xoxo

~my favorite gifts to give and receive~

 My family knows me so well!

I thought I'd share with you some gifts I received this Christmas.

Above is the Juicy Couture angel cable knit robe.

It is so pretty that I honestly think I might wear it out as a sweater as well! 

I also got this Juicy Couture thermal striped nighty in grey.

{no, this is not me~ I wish!}

Super comfy and will be great year round.

This candle smells A-mazing!

 It's very fragrant and fills our whole house with a smell other than pine needles, which I'm kinda digging right now!

You can get it at Anthropologie.

{let me know if anyone knows where else to buy it}

 These towels are one of my favorites!

From Anthropologie as well, I believe they are called the perpetual blooms in light grey.

Check out the other colors too~gorgeous!

 Since I am at Starbucks once, sometimes twice a day, I was really excited to get this gift card for Christmas!

 Now, here are a couple of things we "gave"

My parents got a Keurig, no more wasted cold coffee.

We have one of these and I love it!

If you don't have one and are a coffee drinker, I highly recommend it!

You can also make spiced apple cider and hot chocolate.

I gave my older sister the Brimfield growth chart from seller "kims sister" on etsy.

I think this is the best product I have found in 2011, seriously! 

Affordable, stylish, and practical! 

I will say my favorite gifts of all were the home made ones from the kids.

Savannah made me a book all about me.

I cried so hard I couldn't breathe.

Cody made us 2012 calendars in computer class at school, so sweet.

It's been a wonderful 2011, I am thankful for so many things!

Can't wait to see what 2012 brings.

xoxo

~me and my sissy~

My older sister was away this Christmas.

She was in California with her husbands side of the family, so this year it was just me and my little sister!

Did you all know I have a sister who is adopted from Korea? 

She's 10 years younger than me, which I like to think keeps me hip because she picks out my clothes for me most of the time :)

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday! 

Things have yet to calm down here even a little.

But things are good and I have some exciting news to share with you soon!

{no, I am not pregnant!}

xoxo

~more later~

still recovering, be back shortly!

xoxo

~a festive table and a winner~

 The table is set.

We are ready for a feast.

 I used things I already had around the house, with the exception of these new napkins from

 Lemonade Makin Mama.

 Leftover cedar garland, myrtle topiaries, and lots of candles.

 I had all the dishes, stemware, and silver cutlery,  as well as the silver candle sticks.

 It looks very pretty at night with all the candles lit.

And now, for the winner of the Farm Chicks holiday book!

I cannot believe how many comments I had on this one!

The lucky winner is.......

Allison!

Allison said:

"When I was little...we would gather in my parents bedroom and dad would run in to the living room and put on the "Christmas Organ and Chimes" album before we could come in and see our presents! It was a magical time!

Allison Farrell"

I loved seeing all your favorite memories! I am especially surprised to see how many people get new jammies on Christmas eve!

Merry Christmas everyone!

xoxo

~December in pictures~

 Merry Christmas, from our family to yours.

{click on picture to enlarge}
so excited to be featured here!

xoxo

~a chair make over {under} and a new sign~

 This is my new chair that I sit in while blogging.

I purchased it from a friend recently, and just had it re-upholstered by my friend Angie at A and D upholstery.

{Everett Washington}

She worked her magic on this beauty with double welting and all.

 I love how the fabric goes with my brown transfer ware platter hanging on the wall.

 I painted the frame with Annie Sloan chalk paint in Old White. 

I didn't do any distressing to this piece.

I simply rubbed their dark wax in spots to highlight all the detail.

 I love the arms!

 Around the corner from my desk area 

{which is in my kitchen}

is my new sign from Between You And Me.

Andy and Tara were so fun to work with.

They made this custom sign for me that has everything to do with our neighborhood and our life here on the lake.

This hallway leads to all the bedrooms in our home and so I pass by this sign

several hundred times a day. 

It always makes me smile!

To order one of your own, be sure to click on the between you and me wording above.

 I love the rustic nature of it and the faded colors.

 Want a peek at what my chair looked like before?

A dramatic difference I'd say!

xoxo