5 weekend necessities!

yep.  It's here, that thing we call the weekend!

hooray!!  We are one day closer to Christmas- is your shopping done?

mine? not so much.  not concerned- it will come together, always does.

Any holiday parties this weekend?  We have a few going on and so excited to share the Christmas spirit with my fellow holiday goers!

5 weekend necessities

1)   ticket to the "trampled by turtles" show

these guys are amazing- we've seen them at a couple different venues in STL- they are playing at Old Rock House: Saturday, December 17.

2)    ahahaha.  for when your hubby goes out of town, or when it's just you and

you need someone to cuddle with.  I'm going to make Linden take this to college!!

3)  mommy mittens.

how awesome are these!!  Great for those walks in the park.

4)   totally making these for Christmas!

the tree is an upside down ice cream cone- pipe frosting

  with a 2star and you are good to go!

5)   we will be heading to a toys for tots party where everyone brings

in a toy.  You simply can't go wrong with classic puzzles from Melissa and Doug-

 every puzzle is a winner!!

inspiring picture:

Where can I find this truck?  wreath, snow and all!

do it!

weird... how did this get up there again?!?

Listen to me:

trampled by turtles.

it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!!

deck the halls!!

yep, the tree is decorated, the garland is up.  We are ready for that wonderful day of family, laughter, food, and gifts specially thought for you!

Here are some snapshots from around my house- lots of DIY stuff going on here!!

what's better than singing Christmas carols with dad and mom?!?
nothing!!!!!

"that's how it goes, right dad?"

natural.

going "night, night" on the piano- silly goof!!

here's a fun way to add the Christmas spirit-gather 3D stars and lay them anywhere throughout the house!  These are from pier 1.

another diy- pine cones and acorns.  Some are potterybarn and some are compliments of our yard :)
put these suckers wherever your heart desires. 
seen here in the piano room on top of antique books and brass candlestick.

place setting in the dining room

dining table- I usually have a little more on this one- with our unconditional love of moving I can't seem to find all 25 of my Christmas boxes.

potterybarn lantern- sits in the foyer- I just switch it up every season.  candles on a timer (because I love to leave them on!!) add moss, pine cones, and ornaments.

This little cubby sits in my pie chest.
pie chest below.

just add garland!!

mantle.

I made the mirror with local bark and added the sprigs to the pine cone. 

german st. nick- Linden LOVES these things.  I should have hid them this year!

I love lanterns so adding wreaths around all of them really brings in the Christmas spirit.

soap dish in bathroom.

we are always looking for a place for the remotes that Linden won't get into.  Found this crate at an antique store- added some Christmas linens- old Tera cota pots, moss and pine cones.
(are you catching on?  moss, acorns, pine cones??)

Here's a cute idea if you're having a lot of kids over- we did this on Thanksgiving and it was a hit!!

 have a box of ceramic ornaments, sharpies of all shapes, colors.
Create a "Creation station" and let the kids decorate the ornaments- this could either be a cute party favor or something for the grandparents.

Linden taking her last dance before hitting the sack.  She was such a good decorating helper!!


Merry Christmas everyone!!
I know we all have our Christmas wish, but here is one that I have. 
If you could take a moment and say a prayer for my uncle who is battling pancreatic cancer, it is much appreciated.  Simply put, he is one of the admirable people I know.
When we lived in nyc and he had business, he always made a point to take us out to dinner and come check out our place.  My aunt and uncle are incredible people- please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. 

it's wet, it's cold, it's ice, it's snow... whatever the weather elements are today- be not afraid- for here you will find some great mudrooms to copy or just to add to your Christmas list!

mudroom mania

Just a little entry way, but so much character packed into a small space.  love.

(photo via brabournefarm.blogspot.com)

I love all the umbrella's- it's almost like a party favor!! 

(photo via mydesignchic.com)

lights, camera, action.  I love the natural wood floors and the natural light flowing in from above.  Mudrooms are always closed off, with no light- here is a great way to fix that problem!

(photo via crushculdesac.tumblr.com)

another "ah-ha" moment; the space under the bench.  It's still seperate caddies so everyone still has their own "space". 

(photo via houzz.com)

I love how it just wraps around into the rest of the house.  "Mise en place"  (Something chef in class would say every freakin' minute- the messiest chefs are the best, right?!?)  Simply put.

(photo via houzz.com)

b-e-a-utiful.

I would just take this as my living room- forget the mudroom.

(photo via houzz.com)

I love the colors (and the dog!).  The yellow frmes give it a pop and the pattern on the coushin (to the right) pulls it all together.

(photo via blueprintbliss.blogspot.com)

again, no door.  I love how it lingers into the rest of the house.

(photo via hgoeslightly.blogspot.com)

brick? why yes.  I can totally see my brother in law Rob creating this in a weekend.  He's that good.

(photo via habituallychic.blogspot.com)

This was a snapshot found on google but I fell in love with the colors and the idea.  It looks like a bungelow that closed in the porch to become their mudroom.  Beautiful.

by chance, did you happen to see my adorable baby girl this year?

12 days till Christmas!!!

5 weekend necessities

This week went by soo fast!

which is not a bad thing!

5 weekend necessities

1. goat cheese with pistachio and cranberries

Since any sort of cow milk upsets my stomach, I am a big fan of goat cheese-

trader joe's also has the most delicious cranberry goat cheese- I dip everything in this stuff- as a matter of fact I just made holiday nachos with goat cheese- YUMMY!!

trader joes- $5

2. literary correspondence  napkins

the cutest thing for hosting a brunch

anthropologie.com- $58

I'm not counting this as a necessity, but in fact, it certainly is.

Tear off napkins?!?  WHAT?!?

Perfect for someone like me with a husband like mine.

He would have chosen to do Thanksgiving in paper plates and of course I went with the crystal and china, umm... hello- it's once a year!!

but- tear these "cloth" napkins off and you have the option to throw them away or save them and wash them up to 8 times. 

pretty freakin genius.

I hope someone else out there is as excited as I am about this.

anthropologie.com- $38

3. table setting

Use jars from around the house and pine cones from around the neighborhood

You can buy the stumps at Michaels or cut down a small tree :)

add moss- also from Michaels (WAY cheaper than pottery barn's, I learned the hard way)

Add rosemary twigs on napkins for a great scent!

4. iphone printer

So- you know those 1221 pictures you have on your phone, that you really, really want but unfortunately will never get around to getting them all printed, let alone, go through them one afternoon?

Your crisis is solved- now you can print all those pics of the kiddos with santa right when you get home.

frontgate.com- $150

5. weekend outfit

you are outfitted to go anywhere in this combination- comfy and stylish.

Have a great weekend and remember:

heehee.

defying the inevitable

You know it's the holiday season when you wake up a little groggy- it's not from opening too many presents or fighting the ever so slow walker in front of you at the mall. 

nope.

A cocktail here, a cocktail there...

they all seemed to add up from the night before...

Then comes the bright morning sun, reflecting off the freshly fallen snow, and you lean over and say, "you're getting up with the baby".

(The ironic thing, is that I have yet to say that... new years resolution- say it for the next baby.)

12 drinks of Christmas

1. candy brandy

Pour 2 ounces of premium brandy into snifter

add a dash of simple syrup and an orange rind

sit by the fire and enjoy!

2. hot toddy

1 1/2 ounces premium whiskey

5 ounce hot tea

add 1/2 tsp of honey and a cinnamon stick

garnish with lemon

This drink will heal a sore throat- I use to drink these at work all the time 

(come on- I worked at a restaurant)

3. champagne cooler

3 ounces champagne

1 ounce raspberry liquor (chambord is my fav)

granish with raspberry or orange peel

This is quite refreshing and a great sipper.

4. Christmas cosmo

1 1/2 ounces premium vodka

3 ounce cranberry juice

dash of simple syrup

dash of orange juice

crushed ice

strain into a cold glass

granish with cranberries

5.  peppermint hot cocoa

4 ounce hot cocoa

1 ounce peppermint schnapps

garnish with crushed peppermint or peppermint stick

of course you always have a nice robust glass of wine or the strong, husky ice cold ale awaiting your arrival at all the parties...

tips from the pros

• skip sugary drinks
• order water or club soda in between
• have your last drink early enough to allow your body to burn off the alcohol- generally you burn off about two-thirds of a drink per hour
• if you take a painkiller to offset a potential headache- skip the acetaminophen and take something ibuprofen based.

natural cures for the holiday slumps

obviously rule 1- drink lots of water before you go to bed

drink tomato juice- it contains fructose, a type of sugar that helps your body metabolize alcohol more quickly

eat crackers and honey- honey also has a high level of fructose

have a cup of peppermint tea- peppermint is a carminative, a substance that removes accumulated gas from the stomach and intestines and relaxes them.

all else fails- try another shot.

lemon sour

1/2 organic lemon

1 1/4 cup water

1/2 tsp honey or maple syrup

• juice lemon, reserve juice in cup
• sliced the juice half in quarters and simmer in boiling water for 10 minutes
• strain the water and combine with lemon juice in a cup
• add honey or syrup- drink hot.

hilarious.