A Thanksgiving Love Story

This morning as I contemplate Thanksgiving and all that I am thankful for I am compelled to tell the love story of baby Keenan. I don't take it for granted that I have been blessed now three times with three beautiful and entirely different souls. You'd think it might have gotten old by now but each child is a pure miracle. However, I'm not sure if it's the fact that I am almost certain Keenan will be our last child or old age, maturity, spiritual growth or a combination of all of it but I am in total awe with this new little soul that we have in our lives in a different way. Being a parent is gruesome at times, stressful, confusing and it takes its toll. The dark side of parenting can often overshadow the whole experience making it hard to see the lightness. I am struck by these emotions of pure gratitude that we were chosen as his parents.

After a physically and emotionally tolling pregnancy Keenan arrived perfectly July 15th. A spiritual counsellor/psychic fortold of some issues we would have with Keenan and for nearly all of the last trimester I silently stressed. When he arrived perfect and brilliant I was at ease, but also knew as soon as I saw him and loved his little spirit, that no matter what he was or became, we would love him anyways. Since then I have savoured every little diaper change, singing songs and kissing in the chubby folds of his neck. I delight in every one of his first experiences, taking the time to let things occur naturally. Being my third child, I feel more at ease. There is no rush for each milestone but it is a joy each time something new emerges. The sweet smiles and coos, reaching for toys, and sleeping through the night.

I always had it in the back of my mind that I wasn't done having children after we had Ruby but I wasn't really certain if a third child would actually come to fruition. So, even after he's been in our lives for nearly 3 months I am still awestruck that we have him. I am thankful for each little soul that I have brought into this world and they each have their own story. But, this is Keenan's story and Thank God for him.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Easter Egg Tree

I found such a simply abundant amount of joy in decorating our Easter tree this year. It was a family project that turned out so great! Alex blew all the yolks out of the eggs (gross!!!) Here's a little tutorial on that part if you've never done it before. http://www.wikihow.com/Blow-Out-Eggs Then, the kids had such fun dying the eggs with suprisingly only a couple of casualties. Next it was time for the good part, this part was my favourite...adding glitter and gems to all of them. The kids helped do a few but I have to be honest, I stayed up late and lost all track of time glueing and glittering all by myself.
This is Ruby's egg, she is covering it in glue getting ready to bathe it in glitter

She rolled it around in purple glitter...
Let it dry and glue on the string and it's ready for your tree!
This green one I love (above) because I used some of Martha Stewart's glitter that I got on sale at Halloween which is super fine and looks spectacular. Most of the other glitter I used is dollar store glitter and it gets kind of chunky and it's not that fine shimmer of the Martha glitter.
Hang the eggs with care and admire your glittering Easter Tree centre piece.

Happy Easter,

Happy St. Patricks Day

photo courtesy of: flickr -Jun Acullador

“May flowers always line your path and sunshine light your day. May songbirds serenade you every step along the way. May a rainbow run beside you in a sky that's always blue. And may happiness fill your heart each day your whole life through.” (~ Irish Blessing)

Valentines Fondue Party!

Alex and I celebrated our romantic night alone a couple days before the big V-day so when the 14th arrived I decided to host a little chocolate fondue party for the kids. We invited Grandma and Grandpa along for the fun. Jalen and Ruby had a blast helping make all the heart decorations, and digging into the chocolate of course.

Jalen decided we needed to make tickets for everyone

Grandpa said "You know it was a good party when you end up with chocolate on your pants!"

40 days and counting....

Yeppers...tis the season over here! Officially started today, when I brought out the rubbermaid bins packed with decorations from years past. Is it just me or does the collection seem to multiply over the course of a year? Sifting through I came across a paper shopping bag from Pier One Imports, Cha-ching! I hit up boxing day sales last year, and tucked the bag away for next year. Brand new, sparkling, decorations with the tags on them! Exciting because I probably scored with a 50% off sale on all of them! So, on came the decorating music, Charlie Brown Christmas CD and the fun began.My favorite Christmas Cd, this version exclusive to Starbucks.

We managed to make it through the whole process with only one smashed ornament, and a few disassembled items (care of my darlings, Jalen and Ruby) It's funny because we were trying to explain the Christmas "Season" to Jalen. He was like, "So it's Christmas today?" "Where are all the presents?" We were like "No honey, this is the start of the Christmas Season, so we start to get ready and decorate for when Santa comes, much later." Registering....Registering....Jalen stares at us blankly. He'll get it eventually.

Check out the new blog logo to see my decorated chandelier and a close up of one of my new sparkly ornaments. Below is a pic of our tree that is in our main floor family room, it's a fake. However, we will be getting our real Christmas tree closer to Christmas that we decorate in our downstairs family room. I went with the turquoise and red theme, with a few touches of gold. I am very happy with the final result :) I'm still working on some felt ornaments I will add (felt ornament craft blog to follow)

Click on Photo to enlarge it :)

I'm dreaming...of a FELTED christmas

Gorgeous Wreath made entirely of felted wool balls...WOW! Love this!
photo credit: felt cafe

So, depending on whether or not you still have Halloweens remnants left on your front porch you may feel like you are not even ready for this blog post. Ready or not, here Christmas comes. It's a great time to gather inspiration because 1) November is soooo....boring here in Canada without thanksgiving to celebrate like our American friends. 2) You'll be fully prepared with your vision before you start decking the halls.

So the countdown till the countdown till Christmas begins, while visions of felted things dance in my head...

Felt strand of christmas lights!
photo credit: elsie marley

What's so great about felt anyways? Well, if you felt your own wool it is a great way to re purpose and reuse old sweaters (eco friendly) You do this by simply throwing an old sweater in the wash and let it go through about 20 cycles with the other loads you put in, until eventually it has the texture of felt. I haven't done this yet, but I adore the final product. I have a felted wool purse that is totally cute. Regular store bought felt is often eco-friendly as well.Adorable felt skates ornament for the tree
photo credit: recycled parts store on etsy.com

Pretty garland of felted balls for your tree
photo credit: Made Mary store on etsy.com

I love the simplicity of this felt stocking!
photo credit: rik rak store on etsy.com

Making Homemade Valentines

With February just arriving I am preparing my activity calendar for both my children at home and my children at work. I was thinking that this will be the first year that my children are both at preschool and Jalen especially will understand Valentines Day. Now, when I grew up my mom would always buy me a huge pack of punch out valentines, and I would scan the 100 of them to find the "best" ones for each of my friends. Being extra careful to not to give a valentine that says "love" on it to a boy that I certainly don't! Now, I could make my life alot easier and just get a pack of Dora valentines and get Jalen to pass them around, but a. I like a challenge b. I think it will be more fun and c. I love celebrating all holidays just a little over the top....so....with my kids, I am making my valentines this year. For inspiration I went first and formost to my friend Martha Stewart. I find that she does the most spectacular valentines day crafts and food. Who hasn't seen Martha Stewart magazine's February issue on the magazine stand at some point and just had to flip through the glossy pages, splashed with gorgeous homemade boxes for homemade chocolates, and delicious looking chocolate cakes with pink hearts?

Martha Stewart Magazine February 2010 cover

I've come across some wonderful ideas to make with your kids to give to grandma and grandpa, to pass out at preschool or elementary school, or if you are like me and work with children as well, these are great crafts to add to your february planners.

This simple little valentines are made with those sheets of candy polka dots! I thought they were darling :)

These valentines are flowers made from pretty cardstock and a lollipop is through the centre, I think they would look so sweet if Jalen and Ruby brought them to class with a cute painted terracotta pot and all the flower valentines arranged inside!


These valentines take wrapped candy, gum or chocolate and jazz them up with great pink, red and white printed papers.

These are clothes pins that are cute valentines but also practical as they are used to close up little bags of treats.

Time to get crafting! Happy Valentines Day....

A Christmas State of Mind....

It's December 11, my Christmas spirit is in full swing. I woke up to a perfect light blanket of snow, popped my "Charlie Brown Christmas" cd in the player and scanned my Martha Stewart magazine collection for some of my favourite December issues to inspire me. The Christmas season, encompasses all that this simple abundance journey means to me. An excuse to browse my favourite shops for that "perfect" gift for everyone. A reason to add sparkles and beautiful things in every corner of my home. It stirs joy and creativity and bliss inside me as I decorate and bake and wrap presents up pretty. It's that time of year where you make time to see friends and family that you should have visited this year already, but were "just too busy". It's a time where you get to say "Thank-you" and "I really do love you" and "I miss you" and "You matter" wrapped up in pretty paper and a ribbon. It's a time when it's okay to sing carols out loud. Its okay to wear tacky Christmas sweaters.


photocredit: in7points.com

Its also a time where you start to feel sick as you pull out that bank card for the 50th time and you realize ANOTHER $100 has just been dropped towards this season. You gorge yourself with sugar cookies and dip into those tins of bonbons that are conveniently lying around everywhere at work and you say to yourself "That's it, I'm going on a diet before Christmas" so you can fit into your holiday outfit. It's that time of year when you wonder how you are going to fit everyone in and sqeak by another Christmas without causing a family rift. All of these emotions and feelings, some wonderful and some stressful ...all squeezed into one tiny month. Faster than you can say "Happy Holidays" you are taking those damn lights off the tree, cursing and wondering if you should just take the whole tree lights included to the depot and buy new lights next year. In a flash all those toys you spent a fortune on to create that perfect Christmas morning are in the bottom of the toy bin as they reach for their old faithful toys. Quicker than you can say "Season's Greetings" you are looking through your bank statements and your closet in January wondering was all of this was worth it? All the shortbread and sugar cookies you mindlessly stuffed in your mouth, going all out and buying gifts you couldn't really afford but couldn't admit it to your family and friends. Now January's here and you're muffin topping out of your jeans and you are on a budget of all budgets trying to balance out the mess you created by going "All out." You make excuses for yourself all season...because well "it's Christmas time." Is there a way to enjoy a more balanced Christmas season? Is there a way to delight in the sheer bliss that comes from this time of year without breaking the bank and causing ourselves unnecessary harm? For a such a short time of year it sure can do alot of damage! Let us remind ourselves of the simple pleasures of the season, and here are some of my ideas to help you find joy this year without falling apart this month.

Photo collage from top left going clockwise: 1. My family and I picking out our tree this year 2. My fresh wreath on the door 3. My glittery snowflakes hanging over the dining room table 4. The cranberry centrepiece in the hurricane vase that I created for next to nothing!

*As you can see above I created a centre piece for my table using a hurricane vase and some fresh cranberries with a pillar candle. I think it looks fabulously festive and it was very affordable. A bag of fresh cranberries was around $2.99 and the pillar candle you can likely find at your local dollarstore. I found the glass vase at winners on clearance! I've done pinecones in past year as well. The best part is...the hurricane vase can be used all year round...filled with other things.

*I found these big gold sparkly snowflakes at the dollarstore, I got some clear fishing wire and hung 3 them at staggered levels over my dining room table. The key is to buy them in odd numbers like 3 or 5. But essentially you are adding great flare and sparkle to your dining room for under $5.00

*No time to bake? I found the best idea this year to take oreo cookies and dip them in milk or white chocolate then jazz them up with crushed candy canes or red and green sprinkles. I made these at work with my kids for a holiday open house and they were so pretty all lined up on a Christmas platter...and they taste great! While you're at it, grab a bag of pretzels and dip those in chocolate too! You can create wonderful little bags of goodies for friends and family or co-workers for little money and time. The are also a pretty little cookie to put out for Santa with some milk :)

Photo credit: these chocolate covered oreos can actually be purchased online at amazon.com

*My family and I have friday night movie nights with popcorn, grab a Christmas favourite and curl up with hot chocolate and whipped cream, turn the Christmas tree lights on. My family watched "Polar Express" tonight and had popcorn made the oldfashioned way. There is something magical about shaking the pot on the stove and watching those kernels pop up in the pot.

*Practice your assertion and say "No" this season. Set limits with people. Set limits with money. Set limits with food. You'll be glad you did.

*Create and buy gifts from your heart. I know it sounds cheesy but personal gifts really do mean alot. That extra effort to find something that is based on what you know someone would love rather than setting a dollar amount. My dad got a new blu- ray player this year so I bought him "Charlie Brown's Christmas" , it's his favourite childhood movie. It didn't cost me alot but it's something he will love. This year my husband gave me an early Christmas present of diamond earrings! Okay so the diamonds are spectacular, but...my point is he gave me the earrings with the most beautiful poem that he wrote just for me. I'm not lying when I say that the poem touched me way more than the diamonds did.

photo credit: creature comforts blog

Be true to yourself(and your budget)...follow your bliss...enjoy this wonderful season for what it is but don't lose your money or your mind trying to create an image of what you think Christmas should look like. Christmas is not spending a certain amount of dollars, it's not pulling your hair out trying to bake cookies from scratch (unless you have time and you want to) Its a time of simple pleasures and being grateful for all the blessings you have. It's watching the joy in your children's eyes because they believe in the magic of Santa. When things start to feel tense gently remind yourself of the true meaning of Christmas. Just as Mary Ellen Chase has said:

Christmas, children, is not a date. It is a state of mind. ~Mary Ellen Chase