Jollification of my Home~

Vintage Style Christmas House Project

My Mom and I did a fun project over the weekend. I had bought these paper mache houses about a year ago...and we finally got around to painting and decorating them.

Originally I had intended to paint them creme and other soft colors...but who am I kidding...I am a color girl!

I really love this teal with a red roof! On the roof I just used the cheap snow that comes in a bag...and I had found these "kitschy" reindeer at an antique store, and love the way he makes this house look more "vintagey"!

On this green house...I used silver glass glitter on the roof for alot of sparkle.

This little pink house looks like a puff of cotton candy...I made this one to go in Lucy's room to put under the white feather boa tree I put on her dresser...it will look so magical.

Mexican Hot Chocolate

Have you tried this??

I remember my Mom making this for me as a child, but I had completely forgotten about it...well, I recently bought some...and let me just say....It is Delicious!!!

You take 4 cups of skim milk and one of the discs of chocolate and heat in a sauce pan until it boils, add sugar to taste! It is chocolatey with hints of cinnamon.

I think you will LOVE it!!!

I HEART My Fall Porch~

I love the way my porch looked this year for Fall....Pumpkins, ghords, mums, lanterns, kale, and my favorite boxwoods!! (oh, and a darling Cheeleader on the steps!)

So, now it is time to start thinking about how to decorate it for Winter! Here are some great ideas that I love!

Check out Tracy's Sale!!!

Pottery Barn Inspiration~

Angie...this is for you!

I had seen in the Pottery Barn catalog a cool idea of adding nuts into glass vessels, placing a candle in the middle and then taking old black and white photos and tucking them around the side. I loved the look...so here is my version~

I really love the way this looks, so I will definitely be doing more of these in my house for Thanksgiving....

This is the photo I saw in the catalog~

Black Bookshelf~A Makeover

I recently moved my black bookshelf into my dining room. It will be a great spot to show off some of my favorite things. I decided it should be dressed with White, Sliver, and Black...so I set off to fill it up.

This is the BEFORE picture~ not enough stuff and off balance

This was my INSPIRATION picture (*photo Eddie Ross)

I love the black, white...pop of green!

and AFTER...this is my interpretation with what I have...

I am thrilled with how this turned out...it is a perfect place to display my silver pieces with a touch of Glam!

In My Kitchen{Caramel Apples...a Perfect Fall Treat!!}

The kids were out of school last Friday, so for a Yummy dessert we made caramel apples!!!

Crushed Oreo's and Mini chocolate chips...this was MY favorite!

Candy coated sunflower seeds, Gummy worms and sprinkles!!

My FAVORITE Blog is Back!!!

I am a HUGE Tracy Porter Fan...and was THIRLLED when she announced today her Blog is back!!! Have you visited Tracy before???...you WILL be INSPIRED!

Another GREAT Blog!!!

Have you ever visited The Tomkat Studio?? If not, head on over and check it out!! Kim is very talented...she creates DARLING projects and printables that you can purchase to customize any type of party. Once a month she gives a FREE monthly calendar to print out...AND right now she is have a FABULOUS giveaway!!

~picture taken from The Tomkat Studio~

Fabulous Apron Giveaway!!

I love the blog The Pink Teapot...have you ever visited??? Janine gives lots of great etiquette advice on everything from being the perfect Hostess to things to do and NOT do in the restroom! Well, The Pink Teapot is hosting a giveaway on a Fabulous apron...go check it out!!

In My Kitchen{S'mores Cupcakes}

Recently I went to Trophy Cupcakes in Seattle...and had the yummiest cupcake. The owner was on Martha Stewart last year sharing her recipe, so today I tried to knock it off!

The couple of things I did different than the recipe was I cheated and used a box cake mix, and I used chocolate chips in place of the finely chopped bittersweet chocolate. They turned out really YUMMY!!

Backyard Makeover~

We decided to do a little backyard makeover.  Half of our yard is a sport court and the other half had a small amount of grass.  After having a dog the grass was looking...well let's just say, "not so fresh".  So, we decided to take it all out and make a paver patio.  This was the first time my husband had attempted anything like this, so he was learning with each step!

~Before~

We LOVE s'mores, so a fire pit was a must!

Do we really need that many pavers???

~After~

We are so pleased with the results.  I really love the "old world" feel the pavers give.  The fire pit has been so great and we have even roasted Hot Dogs in it too!

I have 2 Teak Steamer Chairs on order for this empty spot...hopefully they will get here soon, so I can enjoy the rest of summer lounging!

Recently on a trip to Edmonds, I stumbled upon this cool etegere. It was exactly what I wanted for this space...

In the end, we love this space! We love not having grass to mow in the backyard, and it just feels like a "mini resort".