They say that laughter is the best form of medicine when you're feeling low...and I can personally attest to this. After a week that had some unexpected turns and left me feeling a bit down, all it took was one funny little Christmas elf to help get my spirits back up again and experience some Christmas joy. This year for St. Nick's Day … [Read more...]
Custom Christmas Throw Pillows
It's beginning to look a lot like....Christmas? More like springtime! This week has certainly been a strange one in Wisconsin with close to 60 degree temperatures and rainy weather. I felt like bursting out into a chorus of "Snow" from White Christmas to try to help whip up some snowflakes in the air. Unfortunately that did not work. So, the next … [Read more...]
Why This Christmas Less is More
I know I'm not the only one who sometimes feels like this time of year can be downright exhausting. From decorating to parties to baking to shopping - then wrapping - and the constant pressure to have our Christmas be "just so"...it can literally suck the joy right out of the season. Feel like you can relate? I will openly admit, that there … [Read more...]
Simple Advent Activity Calendar
Happy December 1st! And Happy 1st day of Advent! The word Advent is derived from the Latin adventus, which means "the approach" or the "arrival." The verb is advenio: "I arrive. I come. I am coming." Now you've had your daily dose of Latin education for the day! This is a special season as we prepare our hearts for the arrival of Jesus! At our … [Read more...]
Decking the Halls! A Very Vintage Christmas
Have you all come out of your turkey-comas yet? Believe me, I had no choice but to snap out of mine over the weekend and kick things into high gear with preparing for the holidays, which are now officially in full swing! I've got out-of-town family coming in this week to visit and celebrate an "early Christmas" so I needed to get busy decking the … [Read more...]
Happy Thanksgiving!
Thanksgiving is a time of quiet reflection upon the past and an annual reminder that God has, again, been ever so faithful. The solid and simple things of life are brought into clear focus, so much that everything else fades into insignificance. -Charles Swindoll Let us remind ourselves today, and every day, of those simple little things in life … [Read more...]
Operation Christmas Child
Every November, our family looks forward to a tradition that I feel has the true spirit of Christmas written all over it. Many churches in the area, ours included, help participate in something called Operation Christmas Child, sponsored by Samaritan's Purse, an evangelical Christian humanitarian organization that provides aid to people in physical … [Read more...]
It Runs in the Family (Part 1)
I come from a really large family. My mom is one of 5 kids and my dad is one of 12 kids. (Yep, that's not a typo, you just read that right...twelve kids!) All of them had their own kids, then their kids had kids...so, you do the math! Family reunions for us are more like small village festivals! But all kidding aside, one of the areas I've been … [Read more...]
Why I Love Vintage Items
Some people love shoes. I, on the other hand, love old stuff. Ok, let's categorize that a little nicer shall we? Vintage. I don't know exactly what it is about these particular items, but they speak to me. Each one has a history and is just waiting to be awoken from their slumber of disuse. I have a strange desire to track these items down and … [Read more...]
Taking on Tiramisu
Cooking is another form of creative release for me and any chance I get I am always searching for new recipes to try, and new foods to torture, expose my family to. Two out of three of my children are always willing to experiment with a new taste, however the men in our family (big and small alike) are by far much less daring. One thing they do … [Read more...]