Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was really nice this year. Being pregnant and being forced into needing to eat every 2.5 hours is exhausting, boring and annoying. But a day filled with delicious food and people to share it with made eating fun again. Plus the fact that my Grandfather had just passed away made family that much dearer to me.

Paper Tree

It has been far too long since I last blogged and now I am at the point where I am not sure where to start up again. I have a lot to say about my Grandfather's funeral  but that will have to wait for when I have the time to do the experience justice.

So We will start with my Mom coming to visit and some of the fun we have had since She's been here, like making my kids room look like a kids room.

This is an idea that had been forming in my head for a while but it wasn't until my mother in law made me a paper leaf wreath that I knew I was actually going to do it.

So here is my brown paper tree.



I bought a giant roll of post office brown packaging paper and with the help of my Mom crinkled and stapled it to the wall until we had a very awesome tree. I wish that I had a more creative solution, than using a staple gun but I didn't.

Caught in action, that rarely happens!

Then I took About 7-8 different kinds of scrapbook paper ad cut out various size leaves and stapled them to the tree in satisfying adorable bundles. {good trick, pick double sided paper}

I love what it does for there room. It adds that element of fun!



Next I have to make the japanese paper lantern I got from World Market into a Sun, and make a few paper birds and their room will be transformed!

I hope you are all having a wonderful season so far.

 {peanut butter Kisses!}

Feelin like the holidays

Yesterday was a Tuesday that felt like a friday. It was awesome. er ser Cort and Pip came over and played for most of the day. Pipsta made herself her own awesome pine cone tree in silver that I didn't get a picture of but I did get some pics of her fabulous new hair. She and I had fun playing with hair dye. Good girly times.

Gorgeous isn't she?

Oh what a week

What a crazy week this is turning out to be. Thanks to the encouragement, insistance and love from my Husband I am flying down to CA just after Thanksgiving to be with my family for my Grandpa's funeral. I am so looking forward to the comfort that being with my wonderfully large family will bring.

This means school this week is really going to be a struggle and that things are just going to go unfinished, but thats ok. Today Jones was snowed in and unable to go to work, it is nice having him around and making pot roast, walking to the grocery store in the snow, watching C jump and stomp all the way there.

There are so many things I am thankful for this week but most of all I am thankful for my Family and so blessed to have them.

My sister posted this on her blog.had this picture on her Blog,
The I'm thankful tree.

 I think it is a wonderful idea. All you need is a tree branch and a vase. Cut out some leaves on paper, tie some string and let your guests write what they are thankful for. It is a sweet and beautiful decoration for Thanksgiving.

I love you Grandpa

 It started snowing yesterday and just hasn't stopped. It is really beautiful outside my home right now.

My Grandpa died last night.

He went very peacefully and with lots of family with him.

When I recieved the news, news I had been preparing to get for a while, I was suprised by how deeply it hit me.

As I look at my life, and everything that I have I know that  my Grandparents are huge part of who I am.

They have always been the ultimate example of what matters most in life, Family.

I am so grateful for My Family. All my wonderful Aunts and Uncles, and my cousins who have always been there on Holidays and at weddings, Just being there, and loving each other as my Grandpa always did.

I love my Grandpa very much, and I am grateful for the man that he was, and for his legacy.

{me and all of my brothers and sisters}



Pine Cone Christmas Tree

I know I know it is a little early to be setting up for christmas but when you are sick like me there is no time to waste!  A couple of weeks ago I went on a scavenger hunt for pine cones in my neighborhood because I wanted to make a pine cone wreath. I couldn't find any! But last weekend there was an insane wind storm that left the ground covered in these beauties.

So I put on a hood and dressed my kids up real warm and went to go pick hundreds of baby pine cones. The cold air and being outdoors felt so good, I forget how much nature heals me.

My goal this time however was not to make a wreath. Instead I found myelf in love with the many various pine cone christmas trees you can find at Target. I knew I could make my own and it would be a fun/cheap project to start off the holiday decorating.

I had to bake my pine cones in the oven for a while so they were dry because the poor things were soaked threw.

I just set my oven at the lowest setting and kept checking on them to make sure they didn't burn. It made the house smell so good.

Next I grabbed an old cereal box cut off the tabs on the top and bottom and curled it up to make a cone shape. I had to cut off the bottom to make it flat .

A little bit of masking tape to hold it together and voila! I have my base. The next step was a monotonous one but well worth the work. I took a hot glue gun and starting from the bottom working my way all around layer after layer glued eah individual pinecone on.

I layed the pine cones on flat so that as much surface area as possible made contact with glue. I pointed them all down and slightly ovelapped each layer.

This is the result!

Now comes the fun part. You could just leave it like this it is very pretty afterall, but since my Christmas Decor is silver and gold I decided to take it a step further.

Taking some metallic spray paint and a little bit of glitter...

I originally intended to use laquer but never did.

 

I took it outside and using my favorite spray paint box gave it a good 3 layers. After letting it dry I layed it on its side and spayed the undersides of the pine cones. Right after the last layer, before it was dry I sprinkled the glittler on top giving it this affect.

And there you have it, even including the price of spray paint and glitter which I already had my total would come to about 3.50, plus I get the satisfaction of knowing I made it!!

Next a trip to Good will to grab some candlesticks. I have also been eyeballing these beauties at Target but can't/wont afford their price tag of 12.99-16.99 ea. So I found these for 1.99 ea and gave them the same vintage spray paint treatment.

One silver and one Champaigne gold! I love them. All I need now is a deer and my mantel will be complete!

 * Other ideas for a pine cone christmas trees
Red berry and rafia tree
pearls
lightly spray white spray paint to give it a snow affect
Really the possiblities are endless.
Also if you are looking for a craft you can do with multiple people at a church event or house party you can pick up party hats for pretty cheap and use pinecones or dried leaves. Layer, paint and decorate! it is a great gift for the holidays!!

Today my body is fightig harder than ever to make me throw up, something I have vowed never ever to do again! Ladies and Gents the battle has begun, We shall see who will be victorious.