Twinkly and Bright

We had a great day today. Lilly and Doug and I spent the day with my grandparents and my mom and dad. We went to my Dandaddy's (grandfather) church together and then had lunch. After lunch we looked through my Mom's old scrapbooks from jr. high and high school. Mom and Dad grew up together so it was great to see pictures and momentos from their past, times they shared together as kids. That is pretty amazing to me. Another amazing experience from the day was getting to read some of the letters my Dandaddy wrote to his mother from his ship during World War II. They were unbelievable. I couldn't put them down. So much feeling and so much history in those letters. Many of them were written during Christmas time. I can't imagine my grandfather and all those other U.S. soldiers having to spend Christmas on a beach in the South Pacific in the midst of war. We owe so much to veterans.
When I got home I snapped some pictures of my living room and dining room to share with you. I love the "twinkly bright" feeling of the rooms. I use lots of gold, glitter, snow and vintage glass bead garlands.

Christmas Blessings to all, Molly

P.S. I went to breakfast at my church Saturday morning and we had an amazing speaker. She read this verse to us:

"I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.

This is the response Mary had when the angel came to tell her she would have a baby named Jesus. Can you imagine hearing this kind of news? How would you or I react? She did not question God. Her immediate response was to serve him. What an amazing example of faith she is. This really touched me and this verse will be in my heart this Christmas season.

ready or not here comes Christmas!

We were out of the state for Thanksgiving so I wasn't able to decorate for Christmas the day after like I usually do. When I got back from vacation it was time for me to start working everyday at the preschool. I have had a lot going on and I can't believe how long is taking me to decorate the house and post about it. Christmas just snuck up on me!

I want to share some corners of my home. I'll start with my kitchen. I usually go over the top and kitschy for the kitchen with vintage santas, vintage christmas linens and lots of red, but this year I opted for a warm cozy feel with greenery, silvery and cream...

here's how it looks

my centerpiecea cozy corner

nativity my grandparents gave me for my 2nd Christmas, December 1977

I am happy with the overall calming feel of the kitchen but I couldn't be totally kitschless, so i I added some vintage greenery and a mushroom in front of a vintage recipe for fruit cake in my kitchen cupboard :)

Love to all, Molly

1 Chronicles 29:11-13

"Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name."

Don't Forget Thanksgiving!

I don't know about you guys but I am just becoming more and more frustrated and annoyed with retailers skipping Thanksgiving and going right to Christmas beginning in September! Christmas has been slowly but surely creeping farther and farther back. When I was young I remember my Mimi commenting on how terrible she thought it was that stores had Christmas out in early November. Well these days we see Chistmas popping up in stores as early as September and I think it is a crime. They use this tactic to get us to buy, buy, buy. Buy presents, buy decorations, buy clothing!. I'm not falling for it. Yes I have made a few ornaments and have been thinking of some Christmas decorating ideas but I can assure you I will not ignore Thanksgiving and to me the Christmas season does not begin until we have recovered from our turkey hangovers.

Lilly and I were at the mall a couple of days ago and Santa himself was already there! Can you believe that? He's been there for weeks already. Lilly did catch a glimpse of him and got a sparkle in her eye, but I sped by because it's not time for that yet! I went to Walmart the other day looking for Thanksgiving plates and napkins and there were none to be found. Where the fall decor once was (back in September), it was all Christmas. Last night was the Christmas light show and tree lighting here in town. We didn't go. It's not Christmas yet.

Lilly and I have been reading Thanksgiving books and talking about how important the holiday is for the past few weeks. I want my daughter to know that Thanksgiving is a very important holiday. What could be more important than being with family and thanking God for all of the blessings in our lives.

I know Thanksgiving is not a glitzy holiday and there are no presents and gobs of decorations and that is why the retailers want you to shove it to the back of your mind, but I urge you to put Christmas out of your mind for the next few days and focus on giving thanks.

I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving filled with family, love, and warm memories. Love, Molly

Advent Inspirations

My next Christmas project is going to be an advent calendar for Lilly. I have been looking around the web for inspiration. I have found some unbelievable ideas. Here are some of my favorites...

I want to make Lilly's advent a countdown to the birth of Jesus, the true reason we celebrate Christmas, so I think I will add part of the Christmas story each day attached to a little treasure.

Hope you all are enjoying the beautiful fall season. Have a great week. Love, Molly

Homespun, Whimsical, White Christmas

So I couldn't stand waiting for Christmas any longer. I had to start Christmas crafting. This year in my kitchen I want to do what I'm calling a "homespun, woodsy, whimsical" theme. I want to use felt, snowflakes, yarn, pinecones, evergreen, creamy whites, and handmade decorations. Here are my first creations for my little kitchen tree... I got my inspiration at BellaDia. I purchased the small pinecones at Micheal's (Florida pinecones are too big), I made the hats by cutting off the fingertips of a cream colored knitted glove, and I cut the scarves out of felt. They were so much fun to make (aside from the two times I got scorched by my glue gun). I plan on making more for friends and doing an angel version too so keep checking in.
Have a wonderful week! Love, Molly

Something New

A few weeks ago my friend Christie asked me to make a garter for her cousin's wedding. I had never made a garter before but it sounded fun and I always love a new sewing/crafting challenge. I searched the web for some garter tutorials and went to Etsy for some inspiration. I combined some ideas and this is what I came up with...

one for the bride to keep...
and one to toss... I used this tutorial for the folded rose.

P.S. Check out Garter Lady on Etsy. Her shop is amazing!