New Camera

Landon and I gave each other (ok really more for me) a camera for Christmas this year.  I have been wanting a DSLR for about a year now and am super excited to learn how to take better photos with it.  I purchased a Canon T3 from Amazon - they have a fantastic deal right now here. It is very basic, but perfect for what I need it for!  

UPS dropped our package off at 9 p.m. and these were some of the first shots I took with the camera.  I just couldn't wait for the girls to wake up the following morning for a little "photo shoot"!  Many of you asked how I have learned some of the different techniques such as "bokeh".  I have been searching articles online and pinning to my Photography Board on Pinterest.  You can follow my board and we can all learn together!!!!

Here are my sweet girls the next morning on a cloudy and chilly day!  We had such a good time, even if Lauren wasn't in the picture-taking mood!  

Over the weekend we took the girls out to take a few more pictures.  I Love how sweet Brooke looks holding the picture frame. 

This is one of my favorite photos so far!  This is sweet Lauren in front of (about 8 feet) our Christmas tree.  I love the "bokeh" in the background, but most of all I love her sweet face and those dark brown eyes. 

I have been working on the layout/appearance of the blog the last few days.  A big thanks to my friend emily for helping fix my template and creating the pages up top.  I have a tab designated for recipes, and my plan is to move all the recipes from This Hungry Mama over here so I won't have to keep track of both blogs.  :)

12 days of giving

We are halfway through our 12 days of giving!  The girls and I have really enjoyed finding creative ways to give to other people this Christmas.  God has given us SO many blessings and I want to teach the girls how to be a blessing to others.  It's a tradition I hope to continue every Christmas.  You can read about what we did last year here.   My hope is that this post will inspire you to give outside of your "comfort zone" and to be a blessing to someone around you!  I can guarantee it will make them smile!!!  

day 1 - lily & lauren stuffed the mailbox with puppy chow for our favorite mail lady.

day 2 - we got a little snack basket together for a local owasso policeman.  they are all posted at different intersections around our shopping areas during the weekends, so it was easy to find someone who needed a snack!

day 3 - brooke gave these sweet socks to a special little baby.

day 4 - we bought lunch for the car behind us in the drive-thru.

day 5 - ups comes to our door at least 3 times a week thanks to thirty-one & amazon.  we left some cookies on the porch for him!

day 6 - excited to take these donuts to the church office staff this morning before school!

Merry Christmas

Just wanted to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas! Things have been busy around here...and I have taken a break from blogging to get many things done in preparation from celebrating with our family. I'm not sure when I will be "back" so I wanted to say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from our family to yours! Now for a few special photos...

Sweet Brooke

Lauren

Lily

The best gifts a mommy could ask for...

My friend Marybeth took these adorable pictures of the girls...I'm hoping Santa will bring me a nice camera one of these days. :O) Maybe next year...this year my Christmas money went to someone very special. I love this time of giving. The girls & I have really enjoyed giving to others this season. Brooke asked me this morning who she was going to give a gift to today. It just makes my heart melt that she thinks the presents under the tree are for other people! Tonight is our special family Christmas...I can't wait for the girls to finally receive their gifts tonight!

Chocolate Peppermint Crackles

I posted a link to this cookie recipe last year. Yesterday, I added a teaspoon of Peppermint extract to the batter and it turned this cookie (in my opinion) from amazing to "out of control". :O) Love that combination together. Make these TODAY!

A Giving Heart

This year I want my family to focus on giving to other people. We have everything that we NEED, and i want my girls to learn to be unselfish and give to others. I LOVE watching Brooke get something she really wants...but what I love more is watching her eyes light up and her excitement when she gives to someone else. I hope she doesn't lose this excitement...that she will be unselfish and that she would think of others before herself! I pray that I can be an example to her in that way!

December 1 - We took some baked goods to the Owasso fire station.

This morning we left a little goodie bag that we made together for our mail-lady!

Just tall enough to do it herself!

hoping to bring a smile on her face on a cold winter day! :O)

Acts 20:35

"In all things I have shown you that by working hard in the way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, It is more blessed to give than to receive."

My Favorite Time of Year

I just love Christmas. I love every aspect, and this year I just LOVED decorating our new home for our first Christmas here. We finished our decorating Thanksgiving night. I loved that we could relax the rest of the weekend and enjoy our time together as a family.

I just love Christmas. I love every aspect, and this year I just LOVED decorating our new home for our first Christmas here. We finished our decorating Thanksgiving night. I loved that we could relax the rest of the weekend and enjoy our time together as a family.

We moved the piano in the dining room and I think it adds a lot to the space.

our dining room complete with a cupcake box on the table. :O)

Entryway

Guest Bath

Decorating...

So our Christmas decorations have been piled up in our dining room for the last week. :O) Since this is our 1st year living in our new home I'm not sure where to put everything. I am trying to get everything decorated before Landon gets home tonight. We are planning on enjoying a special little family thanksgiving tonight! I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your families and friends. Here are a few pictures of our Christmas Decor...

I LOVE the real pine branches. I used the bottom branches from our Christmas tree to make garland for the door. Everything else is still in progress. :O)

Our new windowpane shelf in the Kitchen. This poor windowpane sat in my garage for 8 months. I was forced to finish it when Landon said he would throw it away if I didn't use it. I'm a hoarder. :O)

Our tree in progress!

Handmade Christmas...

WOW...Thanksgiving is a week from tomorrow. Where did November go?!? For us...it was 5 weeks of CRAZY! TWO waves of stomach flu, Lily's hospital stay, twins getting molars, Brooke had a uti, 30+ loads (i'm not kidding) of laundry. WHEW! Thankfully we are all alive and on the mend (i hope!). We got a lot of snuggle time in and are looking forward to all the fun that Thanksgiving and Christmas will bring.

I have been busy the last couple days making Christmas ornaments and decorations. We are on a tight budget, but I really wanted some new decorations for our first Christmas in our new home! Here are a few of the things I have been working on...

Wreath - Total Cost $12

I used some of the leftover moss to make a few more letters

These are my favorite!

Total Cost for 36 ornaments - Less than $20!

I wanted a pillow for our couch. Just stuffed this target placemat and sewed it back together. Total Cost - $5.50 Wish I could buy these placemats for my dining room...it's like a shiny burlap and so pretty!

Christmas Ornaments

I decided that I wanted to do something new with our tree this year. I have a limited budget for things like this since we are still keeping Huggies in business. :O) So i went to hobby lobby and walked around...and around until I finally decided what I was going to make. You can personalize this and make it your own! My old piano books are still packed away somewhere, so I purchased some "antique" music paper in the paper section. The paper I used in the tutorial has black notes and the paper in the "final product" has red notes. You could use music, scrapbook paper, an old book, newspaper....whatever is cheap and on hand! Total cost for 24 ornaments was only $13.00. I purchased all the supplies at Hobby Lobby for 50% off. Here is a quick "tutorial".

Here is what you will need: Your paper, Glitter spray paint and plain glass ornaments.

Shred your paper! I shredded into small strips and then tore the strip in half. Roll up the strip and put it in your ornament. After I filled the ornament up I "shook" it to loosen the rolls up a little bit.

I used the carton to hold the ornaments while I was spray painting them. Spray one side. dry. spray the other side.

I am getting excited! They are almost finished and extra sparkly in the sunshine.

Put the topper back on and leave them plain or add a ribbon! Hang them on your tree, or reluctantly shove them back in the box until November 25th. :O)