Origami Wreaths

Several days ago, I ran across a tutorial on Domesticali for origami wreaths. I just fell in love with them. They are very easy to make. She made hers out of sheet music. I decided to use scrapbook paper. When I finished, I used my finger and applied a light coat of Elmer's glue over one side. This will keep it from coming apart and makes it more stable. I know you could use a brush but I love spreading Elmer's glue with my finger. Here's some pictures of my little wreaths.

Now, they are all ready for any embellishment that I wish to add for next year. I feel so ahead of the game for Christmas 2010! I might also add that the cost of making these came to 15 cents each. I thought they would be nice to include in the Christmas card next year.

Let's eat!

Let's eat from the pantry and freezer. Go here for details. Won't you join me?

"The Word became Flesh and made His dwelling among us, and we have seen His glory: The glory of an only Son coming from the Father, filled with enduring love." (John 1:14)

Merry Christmas

Gospel  Lk 2:1-14

In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole world should be enrolled.  This was the first enrollment, when Quirinius was governor of Syria.  So all went to be enrolled, each to his own town.  And Joseph too went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the city of David that is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child.  While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son.  She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock.  The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were struck with great fear.  The angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Christ and Lord.  And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”  And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

Simple Centerpieces

I want a centerpiece that is easy to make and one that I would not have to spend money on.  These are some centerpieces (courtesty of Better Homes and Gardens online) that I really like.  I think I will play around with several of them tomorrow to see which ones I like the best!

Birthday Motorcycles

Deniska had a birthday celebration at school this past Fridar.  Since he is not a big cupcake fan, I make these little motorcycles for his classmates.  They turned out really cute and everyone liked them!  I also carried a big cookie which he shared with his classmates.  (I think cupcakes would have been much cheaper!!)

Sony giveway from Owlhaven

"I like green eggs and ham! I like them Sam I Am!" — Dr. Seuss has to be one of my favorite quotes of all time. How many times have we not tried something for fear of not liking it only to try it and love it! How many times have we missed out on a great life experience just to be safe and not try anything? Owlhaven is having a giveaway for this Sony pocket reader. A winner will be announce on Monday morning, December 14th, just in time for the holidays!

2nd Sunday of Advent

Gospel
Lk 3:1-6

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar,
when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea,
and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee,
and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region
of Ituraea and Trachonitis,
and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene,
during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas,
the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the desert.
John went throughout the whole region of the Jordan,
proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins,
as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah:
A voice of one crying out in the desert:
“Prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight his paths.
Every valley shall be filled
and every mountain and hill shall be made low.
The winding roads shall be made straight,
and the rough ways made smooth,
and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”

Giveaway at Rhonda's

Rhonda, at If You Do Stuff, Stuff Gets Done is offering a giveaway of really fun things. The prizes are a small Pampered Chef bar board, Paula Deen measuring spoons, and an apron sewn by Rhonda. So, hurry on over and leave a comment. Rhonda will be drawing a name on December 8th.

Wreaths, Martha Style

Martha has some very beautiful wreaths on her website. The ones I like the most are the ones that can be made without a lot of expense. Yes, I know, I'm cheap!

First Sunday of Advent

Gospel Lk 21:25-28, 34-36

Jesus said to his disciples:

“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on earth nations will be in dismay, perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves.

People will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.

And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand.

“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.

For that day will assault everyonewho lives on the face of the earth.

Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man.”

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! I hope you had a nice nap after your meal today!

Do It Anyway

People are often unreasonable,

illogical, and self-centered;

Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of

Selfish, ulterior motives;

Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some

False friends and some true enemies;

Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank,

People may cheat you;

Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building,

Someone could destroy overnight;

Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness,

They may be jealous;

Be happy anyway.

The good you do today,

People will often forget tomorrow;

Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have,

And it may never be enough;

Give the world the best you've got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis,

It is between you and God;

It never was between you and them anyway.

~credited to Mother Theresa

Give Thanks

Fall crafts

Better Homes & Gardens hasthe prettiest things on their site. I love the picture above. That would be so simple to make. I am thinking instead of "Welcome" that maybe "Thankful" might be just as nice. I really would like to make a picture like this.

Look at these cornucopia balls! I love, love, love them. I am going to make some next week. You spray paint the Styrofoam balls with black paint and then glue on the beans. I am going to get the boys to help me. I know they will love that!

I love this simple centerpiece. So nice.

How easy is this? Candle holders with paper decoupaged on the back. So simple and so nice. I think this would be nice to do for each holiday season. So many ideas, so little time!

Brown Paper Packages give-away

Run over to Brown Paper Packages for a wonderful giveaway of scraps! Hurry, the giveaway ends Nov 1st!

Progresso Soup Giveaway

My friend Rhonda is hosting a giveaway on her blog, A Home With a Smile. The winner will get 2 very snazzy soup mugs that have a nice indentation on the handle to rest your thumb on if you like to hold your mug up close to your mouth. The gift pack also comes with 2 big stainless soup spoons and of course, a can of Progresso high fiber soup. We love the soup in our home. Check it out!

Giveaway at Peas Porridge

PEAS PORRIGE BEST FALL GIVEAWAY! Follow meeeeeeeeeeeee......

You need to check out the giveaway at Peas Porridge. It's a good thing! You have until November 10th to enter!

Another Great Giveaway at Pumpkin Patch Primitives

Look at this beautiful fat quarter bundle of Red Rooster's Pumpkins & Spice Fabrics by Whimsicals that Brenda at Pumpkin Patch Primitives is giving away. Entries will close at midnight EST on Saturday, October 31st. But wait, there's more! If the entries reach 350 there are two fat quarter Bundles (Red Rooster's Pumpkins and Spice by Whimsicals) and a $100 Gift Certificate to Pumpkin Patch Primitives!! I would love to have this fabric in my house. I sure hope I win or I know I will just have to break down and buy this beautiful bundle. So, just click on the picture or the name of the store and it will take right to post! Thank you Brenda for your generosity!!

Giveaway at Bunny Jeans and Decor

Bunny Jeans and Decor is having a Giveaway. She is giving away this cute Pumpkin Head Box. BOO! How nice is that? Pop over to her blog and enter to win! While you are there, take a look at her blog. It's really nice. I do hope that box will find it's waw to my house. I think it would look perfect on my piano.

Wheelbarrow flowers

Remember back in June how I planted flowers in my daddy's old wheelbarrow? It looked like this. I was so proud of my Gerber daisies. Now, it looks like this! I can't even find the daisies anymore. I will have to plant them someplace else next year. I thought I would share these pictures before the first frost. It got close last night but it didn't frost. These flowers have been so pretty this year. I guess I really should replace them with pansies later on. Any other suggestions on what would look pretty?

Arnold Sandwich Thins - oh my!

Dennis and I have fallen in love with these little Sandwich Thins by Arnold! Oh my goodness!! We haven't had a bad sandwich yet. I bought these in the grocery store one day just because I thought they would be a good substitute for pita bread. (I can NEVER get pita bread to open without tearing it!) Anyway, little did I know that I would never buy another loaf of traditional bread for our sandwiches. I am stingy with them since they run around $2.80 (give or take 15 cents - depending on which store I go to.) There are enough for Dennis and I to have 3 days of sandwiches so I buy 2 packs at a time. You must try these. You will not be disappointed at all!

Arnold Select 100% Whole Wheat Sandwich Thins
Each Sandwich Thin (2 slices) are only:
100 calories
1g Fat
5g fiber
5g protein.

And for those on Weight Watchers, they are only 1 pt each

Home Remedies

I can't believe it's been so long since I have written any thing on my blogs. The starting back to school always seems to throw me in a tailspin. At least, that is what my husband tells me. In his words, "You go through this every single year." I know, I know. I get so overwhelmed with the start of a new school year that I basically just shut down. There is way too much paperwork, learning all the students' names, paperwork (TONS of paperwork), getting the classroom ready, trying to juggle home with work, getting the boys settled in to a new school year, did I mention paperwork? Oh yes, I see that I did. I drag home every night and just collapse until the next morning only to do it all over again. It's a good thing that I have a very supportive loving husband who picks up the slack during this time of year. Anyway, there are two home remedies that I would like to share with you.

1. To alleviate stress - take a mini-vacation with your family. We returned last night from a 2 day visit to Stone Mountain, Georgia. It really did the trick to put things back in perspective - my family and personal life needs to come right after my relationship with God. Then work, housework, etc....

2. Sore throat - of course since I am tired and run down, I developed a sore throat last night. This morning, after an exhaustive Internet search, I decided to try this recipe and it really does work. You take one cup of water and add the juice of 1 lemon and about 5 whole cloves. Boil this mixture. Remove the cloves and add a crushed aspirin and about 2 teaspoons of honey (I did not measure this.) I also used local honey, just in case it was regional allergies that was making my throat hurt. Stir this all together and drink. Oh my goodness, it was delicious! And, it did take care of my sore throat.

Those are my tips for today. Have a good day everyone!!

Bathroom make-over

I have been on a painting frenzy in my home the past 2 weeks. I have painted 1 bathroom, 2 bedrooms, and the living room. Here are the pictures of the bathroom. It is the master bath but the boys use it too to take their bath so I added some whimsy to it for them. The color is bright - which is what I need in the mornings to get me going! So, I thought I would share a few pictures of the bathroom.

I spray painted the gold plate holder to white. I like it much better. I don't know if many people have a plate holder in their bathroom, but I like it!

A pretty star over a set of hooks that hold the pool towels. I purchased the star at Big Lots and spray painted it white. It's one of my favorite things in this bathroom! I think it looks so pretty over the colorful towels.

Hooks replaced the towel holder. Plus, we moved it just a little lower for the boys to be able to reach. Notice the shower curtain has cats and dogs on the front.

And, I replace the toilet paper holder to a new one where the roll just slides off and on. I like that very much!

This is a night light that we leave on for the boys. Neither of them like the dark so we have lots of night lights.

I hope you enjoyed my tour of the bathroom. Tomorrow, we might tour the living room. I still have to hang all the pictures.

Re-do makeover

Remember this corner of my small bedroom? I put up the quilt and rearranged the pictures. Well, this morning, I decided to paint this bedroom. Dennis picked out the color and I must say it is beautiful!

Now, it looks like this!

I really love this little room now!

Adrienne's Giveaway

Please visit Adrienne at Adrienne's Armoire. She is hosting a free giveaway group of 2 sewing patterns and 1 needlecraft book. the jacket is sized Miss 8 – 20, and the coat Miss sized 16 – 24. One winner will be drawn randomly ‘from a hat’ – enter by placing a comment under this post. The winner will be announced on Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009. Check out her blog while you are there. She is very talented!

Brenda is having a giveaway!

Brenda, at Pumpkin Patch Primitives is having a giveaway for this cute kit! Run over there and leave a comment. The drawing will be August 7th. Check out her store while you are there. She has some really cute things.

Kim is having a giveaway!

Kim, at bitty bits & pieces, is having a giveaway. This is the bag that she is giving away! Isn't it just adorable?!! You have until July 31st to enter!

Back to school clipboard for me!

Front: Back:

I decided to make myself a new clipboard for back to school. I like using a clipboard. This is a small clipboard, just right for sticky notes or small notepads. I want to make a regular size clipboard too. And, since I love cats, I thought this was appropriate. This was an easy project. I just selected scrapbook paper that I liked and mod podged it on. I then put several layers of mod podge on to give it a protective finish. On the back, I used spray adhesive on the paper and then covered with mod podge. I would do that on the front when I make another one. I just didn't think of my spray adhesive until I was beginning work on the back. I think this would make a cute gift for a teacher, don't you?