Santa can you hear me?

Dear Santa,

With Christmas just days away, and me in utter and complete panic mode, I really could use some elves' help. You see, awhile ago I opened my big fat mouth and offered to host Christmas at my house. Oh baby Jesus, WHATWASITHINKING?!?

Now I am just wishing, and hoping, and thinking, and praying that it will hurry up and go away. I know, bad Christmas spirit.

But if you would be so kind as to send some help, I am sure we can whip my house into holiday shape in no time. Even though you are the master of all things Christmas, I took the liberty of pulling a few ideas out of my hat.









Please, dear Santa, for the love of Mrs. Claus, HELP!

p.s. If it's not too much to ask, could you throw in some snow as well...

No? What about sleet?

Come on Santa, Bring.it.on!

All pics found here.

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care...

This will be our third Christmas as a married couple and I am sad to say that this line from the classic Christmas story has never been fulfilled in our house. Alas, I was determined that this would be the year. It's not that I had never looked for stockings; it's just that I could never find any that suited my taste or my insanely cheap habits.

Tis the season to be merry...and thrifty, I say.

Below you will find my supply list:


I used what I had, except for the glitter and wooden letters which came from Hobby Lobby.

I started by lightly staining the sides of each letter, then modge-podged them, followed by a healthy shot of glitter.



Here they are all ready for their close-up:


Next, I took extra burlap that had been hanging around left over from this project and cut it following the line of an old stocking.



I had grand intentions of gluing them with a glue gun then hand-stitching them, but I got lazy and I also couldn't find my glue sticks.

Soooooooo....

I modge-podged them too.....and it worked!

Here they are all finished and oh-so-pretty.







To be honest, I could have skipped the staining step because you really couldn't see it after it was all together.

Are they perfect? No.

Will it stop Santa from stuffing them full of goodies? Absolutely not!

Thanks for looking and I am adding them to DIY Show Off Holiday Highlights and Kimba's DIY Day. Please check them out!

The Art of Christmas Cookies: 101

I have been on the hunt for the perfect Christmas cookie for well over half my life. Every year, my mom would make Christmas cookies and frost them with that 7 minute frosting. They always looked good, but the taste...well, it left much to be desired. I always felt bad for Santa having to eat those cookies and I vividly remember one year he FORGOT (gasp!) to eat them.

Yeah, that should have told me something.

Anyway this year, I decided to conquer the Christmas cookie world. I found a recipe that looked exactly like the cookies from my favorite local bakery and decided to give it a whirl.

Here is my inspiration:


And here is a brief pictorial of my steps:


As with all cooking in my house, start with a glass of your finest, cheapest wine.



Roll out your dough.


No cookie cutter? No problem. I found that an upside down wine glass worked splendidly.

I tell ya, wine+me = genius!




The recipe says that 8 minutes worked perfectly for their cookies. This was also true for mine. Absolutely perfect to be exact, not too hard or too soft.


Next up, Decorating! However, I would advise to wait until they are completely cool or at least move them off of the hot stove top.


Also, you have to let the bottom layer set, BEFORE applying your piping or else it will end up looking like this:


Be still my beating heart...


I don't know about you, but I think mine are a dead ringer for the original!
In all honesty, these are WAY better the next day and they really are the best cookie that I have ever made.

Try them, you'll like them...I promise!

Based on real life events

Every morning when I pull up to work, I am greeted by a certain valet guy.

Yes, we have valet parking.
Don't be jealous.

Anyway, this certain guy is (hmmm, how should I put this) has a very distinct feminine side. He always manages to make me smile in the mornings, which in itself is nothing short of miraculous before coffee, and he affectionately calls me Snow White, most often in a sing-songy kind of voice.

Well, this particular morning was no different.

I pulled up,

He sang...


And sang....



And sang some more.


(Snow whiiiite, Snow whhhhiiiitttttte, birds chirping in the air......)


Oh, please, make it stop!!

2.3 minutes later, he complimented me on my boots.

Thanks, I said.

Then he starts talking about how his favorite boots' soles came off, and whenever he wears boots he walks with a little more swagger in his step, and something about how he likes heels, do I know where he can find heels in a man's size 13, yada...yada...yada.......

Wait, back up?!? Did he just ask me where to find heels in a man's size 13? As in.....women's heels?

Oh yes. He did. He said that he has been looking for some because he likes to practice his walk, and the taller they were, the better. I just told him to look on the internet, because if you can't find it on the internet, then it probably doesn't exist.

So if you ever pull up for valet parking and a big, tall man in uniform walks up to the car wearing heels, just smile.

And tell him you like his shoes.

Boots found here

Sneaks and peaks

Deck the Halls

Our halls have been decked, the tree is trimmed, and stockings are hung.
We're anxiously waiting for St. Nicholas to come!

Are you?

Pics to soon follow...

"I want to wash my hands, my face and hair with snow"

Anybody that is close to me knows that I.am.a.snow.FREAK! Every year my letter to Santa would always end like this:

p.s. Could you please bring me some SNOW? Please...Pretty Please?!?

Of course growing up in the deep south, we never got any. I think the closest it came to Christmas was a week or two before or after the blessed birthday, but never on it. Last year, we had a snow day two weeks before Christmas; the first time it had snowed in 8 years!

Well, Saturday morning Santa brought me an early Christmas present. I can't believe it has happened two years in a row. Aren't we supposed to be experiencing global warming? Anyway, this is what I woke up @ 5:00 a.m. to see:





What is it about snow that makes everything look better? So pure, clean, and crisp...







I know it's not much and doesn't compare to those that are used to seeing snow on a weekly basis, but for me, it.was.magical. THE END.

10 things I have learned about blogging

Print found here.

Well, it's been over a month since I started this silly blog, or I should say a month since I have kept with it. It has been an eye-opening experience, and something that I have found I really enjoy doing, even if I have been MIA for a few weeks. So here's to what I'ver learned so far:

1. I never met a comma I didn't like. It is becoming quite evident that I LOVE to overpunctuate everything, especially commas. I used to think that English was my best subject, but every time I read and re-read posts, I realize how many grammatical errors I make. I apologize to any English teachers out there, especially if you were mine. Mrs. Lyle, hello? Are you out there? Anyone????
2. Blogging is time consuming. When I first discovered blogs, I would spend hours pouring over old posts of blogs that interested me. Then when, (see what I mean about commas) I had my list of daily reads, I would get so disappointed if someone hadn't updated their blog that day. Now, I have a newfound respect for bloggers, especially those that post multiple times a day and those that do it for a living.
3. My life is not that interesting. Honestly, some days I have zero things to talk about, much less something that it entertaining, thought-provoking, inspirational, or even noteworthy. I mean, really, no one, not even the woman that birthed me for over 21 hours, wants to know how many thousands of calories I consumed that day, or how I discovered this really big...uhmm, nevermind.
4. It has made me pay more attention to daily life. I never really thought much about any positives that might come out of this, but it really has made me start living more in the moment than waiting for tomorrow or next week. I now look forward to the mundane in hopes that something blogworthy will come out it. Not that this has happened yet, but somewhere over the rainbow...
5. I am camera-shy. I have always known this about myself. I most always have a camera with me, but rarely take pictures. Now, I am starting to take more pictures, and might even one day take one with me in it. Baby steps.
6. I am not a member of the Geek Squad. Not only is blogging time-consuming, but it really is hard work, especially for someone who only knows enough about computers to get by. I cannot tell you how many questions I have googled about how to do this or that on blogger. A post that would take a normal blogger 30 minutes, sometimes takes upwards of an hour (who am I kidding, more like two). But it's all in the fun, and I am learning.
7. It is nice to have a creative outlet. I was never much of a journalist growing up. My mother was an avid writer and always gave me a diary for Christmas. Like most things I take on, it all started with good intentions, but come March, it would become more and more sporadic until there was nothing but blank pages. Now, I am more determined than ever to keep at it because it is so nice to see my "pages" finally filling up.
8. There are still nice people in the world. Not that I didn't already know this, but we tend to sometimes forget it when we turn on the news. It is amazing to me how a simple, sweet comment can brighten my day!
9. HTML codes are your Frenemies. I really love how the other-language-speaking codes can change the look and feel of a blog, but they really are a foreign language. It can become so exhausting trying to figure out how a really great blogger did that to their post. However, I have begun teaching myself the basics and hopefully, will learn many more along the way.
10. Whether you want it to or not Life Happens. There are so many days when I have good intentions of putting up a little post, but before I know it, it's time for bed. I just have one question for all bloggers...How do you do it?... ALL? And still put dinner on the table?

Please, show me the way, master.