our christmas tree

We opted for a real tree this year...our first real tree! 

Isn't she a beauty?  It's a 7ft. Canaan Fir.

 All decorated!

We ordered it online from a Christmas tree farm in West Virginia.  It was delivered by FedEx on the day we picked during the ordering process in long box and took a grand total of 15 minutes to put up!  Super easy and very reasonably priced, plus I don't have to store it all year long in a cramped closet ;)  This is a new tradition we'll definitely be continuing next year!

Happy decorating!

christmas crafting with the kiddos

I was digging around in some Christmas decor boxes last week (looking for the Christmas tree ornaments) when I found a decorate-your-own felt snowman ornament making kit I had purchased waaaaay back in July when Hobby Lobby put all their holiday decor out.  Score!!!  So I decided the kids and I would have a "crafty day" over the weekend to mix up the usual routine and make these cute little fellas' to hang on our tree...

All in all, they were fairly easy to make...tie on the scarf, stick on the felt pieces, insert red cord through pre-cut hole to hang on tree, etc.  Not too difficult or time consuming, which was perfect for my two, four, and nine year olds :)   (A few of the sticky-backed pieces didn't want to stick so we did have to break out a little craft glue for those :)  Six came in a pack so each kid got to make two snowmen...

Garrison and Jubal with their creations.  

Due to a medium-sized fit threw moments before I broke out the camera, Avery refused participating in the documenting process via my camera so, oh well, maybe next time!

This craft could also be made by scratch (without an actual kit) very easily using felt, scraps of fabric, thread, a snowman body pattern, buttons, poly fill, etc.  It would take a while longer to prep, but if you have the stuff laying around I think it would be fun to put together!

I do believe there is another kit somewhere containing gingerbread people, so if I find it before the end of the week we will be doing another "crafty day" this weekend :)

What crafty Christmas things have you been making?

december daily Pages 6-10

Happy Monday everyone!  Just think, two weeks from today and Christmas will already be over...I think that's a really weird thought, but I wanted to it share anyway :)

Here is the next round of my December Daily album that I got to work on this past weekend...

 Day 6 and 7

Day 8...I layered a lot of little accents on this page to keep it interesting...

See how I layered the journaling tag in this pic?

Day 9 and 10

Last Thursday we got our tree up and decorated and Saturday my hubby and I got our Christmas shopping done...In. One. Day.  It was a very productive weekend :) Hope yours was too!

diy simple garland

I made this fun garland to hang in the new and improved playroom :)  It was super simple! 

I went to JoAnn Fabrics last week and found the felt snowflakes and stockings in the dollar bin by the checkout lane.  I found the white fluffy trim in the holiday decoration aisle.  All I had to do was punch holes in the top of the felt snowflakes so I could tie baker's twine through them to hang on the white trim (I think it looks like icicles!).  Then I hot glued pieces of the white trim onto the stockings because they definitely needed a little sumpin' sumpin'.  I also bought some colorful candy canes to put into the stockings, but re-thought that idea as it would probably cause more harm than good with the three candy mongrels that I live with :)

Looks like I'm getting into the holiday spirit!

December Daily Pages 1-5

Yesterday it was cold, rainy, sleety, snowy, and just plain yucky! But I got a lot of things caught up around the house and in the craft room, YAY!

If you're not familiar with a December Daily album, head on over to www.aliedwards.com, www.elizabethkartchner.com, or www.amytangerine.blogspot.com and check out they're amazing albums!  Basically, you document the daily events, tasks, activities, etc. that go on during the month of December.  It doesn't even have to be holiday related, or super exciting, just an account of the days of your life that lead up to Christmas.  This is my first DD, so I'm super excited about this new project!


Here are the first 5 pages (and cover) of my December Daily Album...

Here's the cover...I used a plastic overlay from Hambly Screenprints so the inside could peak through.

This is Day 1 (Dec. 1st).  This is the page that is under the plastic overlay (front cover).  I tucked all the Instax photos inside the cute little vellum pocket :)

 Day 2 and 3

and Day 4 and 5

Most of the products I used came from the December Daily add-on from last month's Studio Calico November kit.  I'm pretty sure they're all sold out, but if you go to www.scrapbook.com you can find Ali Edwards December Daily printables for sale.  

I hope this inspires you to make your own December Daily, even if it's just a notepad or journal filled with your own handwritten notes, no scrapping necessary!

Have a great day!

a new place to play

Jubal and I worked all weekend long on the basement.  We got a TON accomplished...he also fixed my broken dresser, wobbly toilet, and broken closet doors!  I honestly didn't think he would be so driven to get this stuff done, but for some reason he was (the fit I threw on Friday might have had something to do with it ;)

I still have a few more decorative touches to add and few other items to place (they'll receive those for Christmas so some things will have to be rearranged), but here's how the playroom turned out...

Now they have a lot more room than they did before and I can add more storage pieces as needed.

Here's a pic of the family room area...

I still haven't found the "perfect" couch yet, but I broke out the crazy, decorative pillows anyway :)

 These pillows came from Pier 1 and the green throw came from West Elm, as well as the pillows in the picture below.  I'm still patiently waiting on my new area rug (it won't be in until January).

The family room area is not quite what I've had in mind these last few months, but it'll do for now.

All in all, I really like the area flip-flopping we did down here and the rest will fall into place as it's supposed to eventually.  I'm thankful for all the help my husband gave me, I know this kind of stuff is not his cup o' tea, but he was a real trooper this weekend :)

Hope everyone is having a happy Monday!

a little progress

For me last week was like getting in your car, driving all the way to the store, spending an hour filling up an empty shopping cart with two whiny kids, and then realizing you forgot your wallet when you reached the checkout lane...um, yeah...it wasn't good.

Yesterday, however, I FINALLY received my brand new Kenmore Elite washer and dryer (insert squeal and happy dance here ;)  I've been waiting a month for this people!

 

Not black...blackberry

They stood there watching that thing for over 30 minutes!  

(You can really see the purple-y color in this pic.)

Last night and this morning the hubs and I started attacking the basement.  I've had shelves, tables, chairs, and playroom decor in boxes for months now.  I was waiting for the new paint and staircase to be completed first but, for reasons I couldn't control, we had to put the paint and steps on hold...at least for now.  So I decided to just do what I was going to do anyway, new paint or not!  

 The kids jumped right in on the new table with attached paper roll while Jubal and I assembled the shelves.  BTW...the table, chairs, and shelf came from LandofNod.com.  The quality and prices are amazing!  

This is what Garrison ("Mr. I hate art class") drew and stamped.  I teared up a little on this one :)

I will post more pics of the playroom on Monday because I still have some arranging to do.  I'm also three days behind on my December Daily album, so I'm hoping to do some catching up on that, too!  For more info on the December Daily album, check out this blog www.aliedwards.com, it's super cool!