Cute Gift Idea in a Jar.....

Good morning, sweet friends!  Hope you had a fantastic weekend and are ready to get the week off to a great start!!!

Prior to Christmas, I came across the cutest idea on Pinterest......so, I decided to try my hand at some homemade gifts this year.

Now that the holidays are past and these gifts have been "given", I can finally share the idea with you!

With young ladies in mind, I put together this "mani/pedi  in a jar". 

The concept was simple......a quart size canning jar and all the ingredients necessary to work on those fingers and toes.

I had fun putting these together.  Starting with a layer of cotton balls, I added the tools necessary to work on nails - colorful files, clippers, cuticle sticks......

I included travel-size foot scrub/cream, polish remover and those nifty toe separators.......

And the fun part was picking fun glittery polishes with the young ladies in mind. 

To finish it off, I used pinking shears to cut a square large enough to cover the top and screw down with the ring.  Twine was just a little finishing touch for fun. 

I also did some cookie mixes in canning jars this year and they turned out very well.  I experimented with the fabric on top a bit and loved the finished look when I used a saucer to trace and cut the fabric in circles, instead of squares.  Alas, I took not a single photograph of the finished product!!!  Guess I just wasn't in a blogging state of mind.....

With the cost of the canning jars coming in at less than $1 each, I am eager to explore more options repurposing these containers.  Have you found some cute ideas to utilize them?  I would love to hear about it in the comment section below!

Happy Monday!

Finally Friday...and a New Do to Boot!

I'm doing the Happy Friday Dance over here.  How about you?!?!? 

Even though I am going to have to work this weekend, the family has big plans for belated Christmas dinner while my sister and her brood are in town for a couple of days.  And, Eddie Dale is off!  So, I'm thankful it's the weekend!!!

Further lifting my spirits, I was finally able to get in for a haircut this morning.  It's been three months since the last trim, as I was letting some layers grow....and grow....until I just couldn't stand it any more!  I'm FINALLY getting back to the length and style I had when I did the billboard shoot last spring.  I would look at that photo every time I added my signature card to an e-mail at work, every time I handed out a business card, and every time I drove by my billboard....and think to myself, "Geez, my hair looked pretty good that way!  Why the heck did I change it?!?!?" 

I guess that's just the nature of a woman....to never quite be pleased with her appearance! 

Anyhoo, I finally reached the point where I could go in for a cut very similar to what I had before.  And it feels wonderful to "match" my photo again! 

Isn't it amazing how something like a simple change in hairstyle can make you feel so differently? 

So, how about you?  Have any big and exciting plans for the weekend?  Or maybe you're just getting an opportunity to hibernate and enjoy a little down time? 

As for me, I'm about to undertake a quick housecleaning so that I'm not trying to squeeze that in tomorrow.  Oh, and wash some clothes so I don't have to resort to digging in the laundry basket for something to wear.  If I don't resurface in a few hours, send the posse!!!

Happy weekend wishes!

Chats on the Farmhouse Porch.....

What?!?!?  It's already January 8, 2013????  This past week simply flew by and left me swinging in the wind....

I thought I would link up with Patrice, over at Everyday Ruralty, for conversation on the porch.  Of course, it's miserably cold and drizzly here....so, I figure we can sit inside for a bit.  Just brewed a nice pot of Texas Pecan flavored coffee, so grab a cup and sit for a bit.

Here are today's topics.....

What's your favorite thing to have in hot cocoa/hot chocolate?  I love some marshmallows floating in my hot chocolate....yum!  But, I can drink it just straight, too.  Since the holidays, I've been keeping a little hot chocolate "bar" set up on the kitchen table.....and the kettle on the stove for quickly heating water.  Just feels right at this time of year.

Did you have a white Christmas?  Have you had snow since then?  Yes, we did have a nice dusting of snow on Christmas morning.  Not enough to build a snowman or make snow angels, mind you.....but, it made it feel very seasonal and festive to see the tiny snowflakes falling lazily from the sky!  We've had another dusting since, but no real accumulation.... just quick flurries where you might miss it if you blink!

Have you been looking over seed catalogs?  If this doesn't apply, what kind of catalogs do you like to leaf through?  Hmmmmm, no, I don't browse seed catalogs.  In fact, I don't browse any sort of catalogs anymore as I don't receive them in the mail.  Do you think it might be because I never ordered anything?!?!?  Mostly, I get ideas and check out new things via PINTEREST!!!!

Gas stove or electric?   Love, love, love a gas stove!  Seems like food just cooks more evenly and it's easier to control the heat.

What's new or interesting?   Wow!  Well, let's see......

**With the new year, I have renewed energy to keep working and growing my business.  There's always a natural lull in Real Estate right around the holidays.  So, it's been a challenge to come up with fresh ideas and energy to jump start the year.  But, I'm encouraged by little things on a daily basis, so I'm feeling a sense of accomplishment just to be "working it". 

**I went "junkin" with a friend last week and bought some items that I am going to be using in a project here at the house.  I keep trying to get to this project, but......well, you know how that goes.  So, I'm penciling  in some craft work in the planner and then bumping it daily when I don't get to it.  Hopefully, soon! 

**We're doing the happy dance over here at the news that we're going to have a new granddaughter!  Bonnie had another sonogram right before Christmas and it's confirmed.  Can't wait until May when we get to meet the new little princess!!!  And, I know this is not the prettiest photo.....but, it's beautiful to this Mimi!

 Be sure to drop by Patrice's porch and visit with some of the other bloggers!  You never know what to expect.....




Stay warm, my friends!

TRUST for 2013.....

I have really debated whether or not to choose "a word" for 2013.  Last year, I agonized over the selection of my word for the year.....and didn't really follow my heart....or follow up on it throughout the year. 

However, this year a word keeps creeping into my thoughts, unbidden and repeatedly.  Feeling that last year's word was an utter failure, I resisted the gentle urging that kept pushing this word to the forefront of my mind.....

I must need it......

And need to do it more!

So, on this first day of the new year, I yield to that tugging on my heart to make this a word on which I will focus, pray and act.

 Trust - verb - to place confidence in, depend upon; to hope or expect confidently

How can a five-letter word be so daunting?

Simply because it requires acknowledging that I cannot do or control all things....

it requires letting go to depend on Him in all things.

I am linking with Melanie at Only A Breath for the monthly One Word linkup party. 

Sending each of you warm wishes for a wonderful 2013....

Putting Away the Tree and Trimmin's....

Awoke to gray skies and cold weather on this Sunday morning.  Oh, how I wanted to snuggle back in and sleep a bit longer......

But, something inside of me felt restless.....I had a nagging idea that I should get up and clean house....really clean house.....minus the Christmas decorations!

And, so I pulled on my favorite grubby gray sweats and a jacket and began the process of dragging all the plastic storage bins into the house from the storage shed in the backyard. 

All the ornaments have been removed and wrapped in tissue and plastic.  The tree was bare and the pups were incredibly curious as to what I was doing.

Bit by bit, I collected little touches of Christmas from all around the house.  The dining area near the back door became a staging area. 

Now, I have nearly finished and am in the process of cleaning the rest of house.  Laundry, laundry, laundry....I have no idea how two people generate so much.  Changing sheets, scrubbing the bathroom....still await me.  And the kitchen floor is a mess, thanks to so many trips in and out the back door.  But, the rest should be a breeze......

I'm sad to see it all go back into storage until next year, but I'm glad I listened to that little inner voice telling me to get my rear in gear and get it done.  It feels a little bare right now.....doesn't it always when the tree and decorations come down?

The pups are chilling in the living room while I work through the rest of the house....

....and I am feeling good about getting it done!!!

Looking forward to starting off the new year in a clean house!

Contemplating the New Year....

I'm loving that it's Friday and Eddie Dale is home this evening!  Actually, he has been off all day, but I ended up working for the first half of the day and had another appointment later this afternoon.  So, we didn't get to spend a "day off" together......

But, I am still thankful that he is home and piddling around in the kitchen, putting together dinner right now!

It's hard to believe that this is the final weekend of the year!!!

Where, oh where, did 2012 go?!?!?  

It seems that it just sped by at warp speed.  

I ask myself...."Am I ready for the new year?"  Hmmmmmm.....I suppose I have to be.  Because there is no stopping or slowing the clock.  2013 will arrive, ready or not.  

As I look back at the last year, I wonder whether I met my goals....

or accomplished what I had hoped to accomplish....

or lived as I intended to live, on a daily basis....

The answer to all is "NO".  

I did not meet all of my goals or accomplish everything on my "to do" lists.  

I did not always act, respond and think in the way I intended.  

I did not live every day to the fullest or live "in the moment" nearly enough.  

I did not make "New Year's Resolutions" at the beginning of 2012.  Instead, I set goals, both short and long term.  And, as I look back, I did not achieve all those goals.  

However, I do not feel down in the dumps or depressed over it.  I am not beating myself up over it because I knew that, realistically, I would not achieve all I hoped to in this past year. 

What I do feel is MOTIVATED to do it all over again!  

Reevaluate and ponder on where I felt short, what I need to change 

and how to continue moving forward from where I am at this moment.

I figure this weekend is a good time to really start focusing on 2013.  

Maybe I should have been doing it before the final weekend of the year, but with the lull between Christmas and New Year's, this seems to be a fitting time for me.  

Much can be accomplished when a little extra thought goes into it.

Many obstacles can be overcome with foresight and focused planning.

 A life can be changed with an adjustment in attitude.

Whatever the new year holds, I am eager to move forward and greet it.

2013???  Bring it on!!!

 

The Day After Christmas....

Hard to believe that Christmas has already come and gone!  

We kept things pretty simple here at our home.  All the decorating, shopping and wrapping was done early, so those last few days before Christmas seemed oddly quiet and peaceful.  It actually felt a little weird not to be running around like a chicken with my head cut off at the end, though......

I did do a bit of tweaking on decorations in the final week.  I found some lovely snowflakes at Dollar Tree and put a bit of bling on the trees out on the porch and the garland wrapped around my snow globe display.  I love the snowy effect it gave and it only took a couple of packages of snowflakes.  Total cost - $2. 

The family came together at our home on Christmas Eve evening and enjoyed a very simple meal.  We put out sandwich meats and cheese, along with mini croissants and rolls to make sandwiches, and a variety of dips, chips and veggies.....what could be easier?!?!?  And, everybody got to have exactly what they wanted.  I also warmed apple cider with cinnamon and orange slices in it to sip on throughout the evening.

  
Then, chaos reigned while gifts were exchanged and opened!  We watched Christmas movies for a while and everyone just drifted out, taking their leave as they got tired.  It was a wonderful time and definitely the highlight of our holiday.

We left all the Christmas lights on, both inside and outside the house for the night and snuggled up as a bitter cold front blew through.  On Christmas morning, we awoke to snow flurries and we had a decent dusting of snow for a semi-white Christmas.  After a quick lunch of leftovers, we bundled up and headed out into the cold.  Destination - the mall theater with our pre-purchased tickets to "Les Miserables" clutched tightly in hand.  We arrived early enough to get terrific seats and munched on way too much popcorn while we waited for the movie to start.

I must say that I totally enjoyed the movie!  The music, the cinematography, the acting - I thought it was all superb.  And, hard as I tried, I couldn't keep the tears from my eyes in the final scenes.  The theater was packed and I think Eddie Dale and I have found a new Christmas tradition - the movies, of course!  When we returned home, we snacked on leftovers (again!) for dinner and popped in "It's a Wonderful Life" on the dvd player.  The perfect ending to a pretty perfect day......

Now, I've spent the better part of the day at the office and have come home to a quiet house.  Eddie is at work and the pups are all glad to see me.  I have another full day of work planned tomorrow, so this evening I am going to curl up and read....or maybe watch one last holiday movie that I recorded off the Hallmark Channel.  I'm having a hard time letting go of the Christmas feeling this year.....the tree and decorations still look beautiful and I plan on leaving everything up until the new year. It just feels so warm and cozy....I can definitely enjoy this for another week!

When do you take down the decorations???  

I've done it as early as Christmas evening, after the children went to bed.....and as late as the first week in January.  I guess it all depends on the year and what else is going on....

I hope you and your family/loved ones/friends had a wonderful and blessed Christmas!  Now, we can all look forward to the new year - 2013 - with great hope and anticipation!!!

Hugs,