activites advent calendar days 1-5

man, it has been a really long time since i've posted anything. i'm not really sure why, except that i feel a little like i don't have much to say. which does not make any sense because i have been crafting up a storm and usually love posting about things i've made. 

i still don't feel like writing a post. but i figure if i just do it then maybe i'll get myself out of this rut. 

anyway.

now i'm going to share about the activities advent calendar i whipped up. i went to Target (shocker) and bought 13 pairs of baby socks and attached them to a string with clothes pins. i love it. 

i also snagged some chocolate coins, chapstick, and pens from the dollar bin to put a little treat in each sock for the kids. i think i spend $26 total. not bad. and next year i won't have to buy the socks again so it will be even cheaper.

then i wrote out the scripture verses from the story of the birth of Jesus on 25 little strips of paper. i used this link found on Pinterest as guidance. then i mapped out 25 mostly free activities we could do each day that were Christmasy. it's been fun seeing the kids get excited to check in the socks each morning after breakfast for the treat, scripture, and activity of the day.

Day No.1} two Candy Cane Joe Joe's and milk for an afternoon snack. this is a seriously special treat because we don't really let the kids have too much sugar. (although, little a is a little candy crazy after Halloween. anytime you ask her anything her answer is: CANDY!)

Day No.2} snuggling up with a Christmas movie for our weekly Family Movie Night. 

we also got our tree on Friday! and it was no small feat. we went pretty early in the day to Home Depot so we could get it before Big A went to school. i was planning on putting the lights on while he was at school and little a was napping, then we could all decorate after school. little did i know that Home Depot would have mostly ugly and dead trees. so we went to two other tree lots and discovered beautiful and really expensive trees. boo. we decided to grab lunch and send the boy to school and try again when he got home. after calling our friends to see where they all went, none of them were really close by so we decided to go back to Home Depot and see if they would let us cut open some wrapped up ones in the back. when we got there they had put a whole new bunch out of really nice fresh looking trees.

Big A thought this little 3 footer would be the best fit for our house, but we couldn't all seem to agree....he does look cute and manly holding it up though!

we decided on a mammoth 7 footer that weighted about 150lbs!!!! dang. we had to man handle that thing to get it in the car... then once we got it home we had issues getting it to stand up straight. i think my husband threw out his back lifting it so i could readjust the stand. it's still a little crooked, but at this point we don't care. i will not allow anyone else to get injured. after letting it rest overnight we decorated Saturday morning. 

Day No.3} bundle up for the Old Town Clovis Christmas Parade. where we're from the thing to do is called December Nights in Balboa Park... and like 50,000 people or something stupid like that show up to this thing. we are ALWAYS miserable. we stopped going several years ago and avoid all parades due to the anxiety parking and crowds gives us. but this year, i thought we could try again, on a smaller scale. and i'm so glad we did! it was such a good experience. super mellow and stress free. i made Chicken Tortilla Soup and hot cocoa in thermoses, we layered like crazy, found a great parking spot, met our neighbors and saw like 5656867945 of our friends, then stood back and waved at all the marching bands and random businesses and churches in trucks singing caroles. my favorite was spotting a little boy no older than 9 riding what looked like Li'l Sebastian from Parks and Recreation! we LOVE that show and it made seeing a tiny horse that much more hilarious. 

Day No.4} make gingerbread people. after watching my awkward Holiday Martha video i wanted to make some amazing gingerbread people... but unfortunately my recipe turned out too gooey and i couldn't even get the dough off the parchment paper. we had fun mixing the dough, and i still used it to make drop cookies (which were awesome)... but i still want to try again. 

Day No.5} write out your Christmas wish list. 

little a's list says:

1. drawing princess (i have no idea what this is.)

2. crown

3. dress up jewelry

Big A's list says:

1. two face

2. christmas calendar

3. skeleton gloves (?)

4. stuffed animal

hmmm.... i think we have other plans. is that bad? 

there it is people. activities. Christmas style. 

i still don't feel like i want to post. grrr. i'll try to squash the blog Grinch soon so i can share with you the awesome Holiday infinity scarves, stockings, and bunting i made and how we decorated the house. 

maybe. 

tara

what we wore wednesday slash thanksgiving recipes

today has been such a lovely day. first, my darling husband let me sleep in and made the kiddos chocolate chip pancakes for breaky. then we all lazed around and caught up on our favorite show, My Little Pony. no joke. we ALL love it. it's hilarious. and clean. 

around 10am we decided to swing by the Kaiser Farmer's Market because the Dusty Buns food truck was parked there. we got there by 11:15 and thank goodness we did because there was a super long, slow moving line. we didn't mind waiting too much because it was such a beautiful day outside. while in line i figured i could use the time to take pics for today's what we wore. 

sister's outfit was actually picked out my moi, because she has been getting crazy with the fits about clothes and has thus forward lost privileges to picking out her own clothes. we are still discovering how much freedom is too much for her, and apparently she cannot have any in the clothes department. ANY. so she looks super cute in a $5 walmart dress, jeggings from Target, leg warmers i bought at the Holiday Boutique and i can't remember who from, and gifted clogs. 

eek! they have strawberries on them! adorbs. i tried to explain to her that leg warmers are really ankle warmers and are supposed to be scrunched down. i even showed her pictures on pinterest. she kept pulling them up all day. {this is where i pick my battles....}

i SWEAR we have never shown him the movie Godfather, despite what this pose might imply.

i can't remember if brother picked out his own outfit or if daddy did because i was not involved. it is cute nonetheless. and he's totally going through a bow tie phase right now and i love it. i need to make like 4565694356 bow ties so he can wear them with everything. yes, that is the sound of another project being added to the list.... also, a haircut. he looks like a ragamuffin. he doesn't want us to cut it because he wants it long and "slicked to the side like superman", and i quote. 

but it was starting to look a little mushroomy. 

the hizzy to the hott. mmmyes. he's wearing an American Rag shirt from Macy's.

i totally fell in love with the girly velvet bows that Elsie from A Beautiful Mess has been posting on instagram so i made one out of left over flannel. its my new fav. i need more flannel. NEED. that beautiful cowl was traded for a bunting by my lovely friend Jen. she's working on an etsy sight so as soon as that's up i'll link her. 

close up of the bow. 

i also wore a black v-neck tee from Old Navy, gray cardi from Target,  Levi's, and these super cute flannel (!) flats from Payless. 

by the time it was our turn to order our food it was 1:00pm and i was so hungry i didn't take any pictures of the food. but my husband and i each had half of the Le Grilled Cheese sandwich (aged white cheddar with bacon and heirloom tomatoes) and the Dusty Bun sandwich (chipotle pulled pork with black slaw) and the mixed green salad with grapes and goat cheese. holy dang. so good. 

then we came home, put the kids down for nap/rest time and gave Couvie (Vancouver) a flea dip. please note: this is not our cat. he is our neighbors cat that lives in our yard and never leaves. we started feeding him because he was getting skinny and would never leave and meowed out our door and stared at us with sweet kitty boy eyes until we couldn't help it anymore. he's a lover. and we didn't want him getting eaten alive anymore. so i made him a warm bath in a tub outside, soaped him all down, then blow dried him. he purred, and kneaded my leg. then i fed him comfort food. them i let the kids hug him because i never do because he's always filthy and i don't want my kids to get fleas. 

then we got Big A a haircut. 

the end. 

now i will share all my most perfect and favorite recipes to make on the most wonderful day in all the year.... THANKSGIVING:

1. turkey 101 by martha stewart. only i don't stuff the turkey with stuffing... i stuff it with lemons, onions, and garlic. something about eating bread cooked in a carcass makes me want to wretch. 
2. roasted long beans with herbed butter. the butter is amazing and fresh green beans, roasted, are also amazing. 
3. Grandma Peg's mushroom dressing, that has not yet been released to the public but will make me weep because i'm not having any this year. 
4. i like to just roast yams and sprinkle with brown sugar and butter generously because its easy and still thanksgivingish. 
5. this year i'm making mashed potatoes with cream cheese  because one year when we were living in orange county and didn't go to san diego for thanksgiving we went to a friends house and the mashed potatoes were INSANE and she said she put cream cheese in them. so i found this recipe on pioneer woman, and lets face it, everything she makes is gold. 
6. today i made this apple-orange cranberry sauce and it made my house smell like Thanksgiving heaven. i hope it tastes the same.
7. Costco pumpkin pie. its huge and perfect. and i don't want to mess up something as serious as pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving because it will send me to tears and ruin the holiday altogether. 
8. and for an appetizer i got vanilla infused goat cheese rolled in cinnamon cranberries, also from Costco. should be ridic. 

the end, end. 

happy thanksgiving eve!

tara

p.s. sorry about all the run-on sentences. wink.

around here

i feel like i want to post something Thanksgiving-ish everyday this week, before the actual holiday itself is over too soon. it's my all time favorite holiday and i'm really trying to treasure it while it lasts. so many people are already putting all their fall foliage away and adorning their mantels with evergreens. the stores went straight from Halloween to Christmas and all the radio stations are playing Christmas music already. 

not me. i refuse. i shall not allow this most precious holiday pass before its own time. 

so today i will show you my autumn decor and also give a teensy sneak peak at our new living room. i won't do a final reveal until i finish the curtains, but that may take a while because we're saving up for curtain rods. 

since we got rid of the bookshelves/desk in the living room i no longer have a place to display my camera collection. this floating shelf in the dining room is going to have to do until i find a more permanent place. a little fall foliage peeking out from behind the cameras adds the perfect touch for the season.

i have had this fall foliage for several years. it was a sweet gift from one of my besties, Bekah. she's such a good mommy and always makes her house so lovely and cozy for her kids to have good memories around the holidays, and when i had my own kids she thought i needed some too! i added some to my sofa table, along with some pumpkins and the gifted Peanuts characters that were sent to my kids from their Nana and Papo. i can't wait to watch the movie with them sometime this week!

today Cherish came over with her boys (it's been FOREVER since we've hung out all together!) and we did a little craft making pinecone turkeys. mine is the one in the middle. the kids' turned out a little.... deformed creative, just the way we like them!

more foliage on the mantel, along with a "thanks" bunting. i love having a fireplace to hang things on... i just wish it was prettier. ick.

someone needs to give me a lesson in display photography because these next two pictures are awful! i have this weird ledge above my living room and everytime i try to take a picture the massive, low hanging, ceiling fan gets in the way. the ceilings are vaulted and super high so i have been struggling to fill the space with large objects. i feel like i've finally started getting somewhere with it, but i just can't take a picture to do it any justice. oh well, you get the point! i got the crates for $5 each at a produce store here in Fresno and filled them with lanterns and books. 

on the opposite side, by the stairs i have this massive chest that my husband and i bought when we first got married to use as a coffee table and extra storage. the typewrite was a garage sale steal and beneath it is another lantern and a pretty vase. i'll try to take better pictures for the real room tour. maybe i should unpack the rest of my wealmostmovedbutneverdidandnowwe'reignoringthatfact boxes from the garage and find my camera tripod.... 

here are some other fall decoration inspirations i've recently found on pinterest but didn't have time to do this year: 

i can still do this and keep it up for Christmas! double rainbows. 

so simple.

still so simple. also, charming.

 can you tell i'm into pinecones right now? 

pie banner! what! no. yes!

assortment of pretty pumpkins

this is amazeballs. i need one, yesterday.  also, the hutch and all the whiteware. thanks.

I HAVE TO MAKE THIS CUTENESS TOMORROW. I HAVE TO!!!! sorry for all the shouting. i can't help myself.

two more days til my favorite day! 

can't wait.

have you taken down your fall decorations yet? or are you a die hard "wait til the day after Thanksgiving" fan like me?

kisses,

tara

holiday bunting

for some reason this holiday season i have a need for texture. i don't know what it is, maybe a mix of pinterest and a mix of all flannel in the fabric stores being the same color as the changing leaves... whatever it is i'm embracing it. and it's mostly showing up in the holiday bunting i made recently. 

i spent most of last week compiling inspiration and organizing supplies for a bunting bonanza craftathon. 

the wool felt feathers are my fav!

and ALL of Friday (minus one hour to help in Big A's classroom) was dedicated to cutting, hot gluing, and piecing together some of my favorite bunting EVER. {a special shout out goes to my sweet husband for allowing me to completely abandon him and the children while this major project was underway.} i just LOVE how they turned out.

i used a mixture of velvet ribbon, white burlap flags, music sheet holly leaves, wool felt holly leaves, satin ribbon berries, and glitter chipboard letters for the "jolly" bunting. 

i made several of these more simple mini-buntings.

for my Thanksgiving themed buntings i used velvet and grosgrain ribbon, burlap and flannel flags, book page leaves, wool felt leaves, feathers, wool felt feathers, and acorns. i wish i could wear one i love it so much.

dets.

i had about 12 bunting for general purposes and made 10 more holiday bunting for the fair. whew!

i brought all my bunting to sell at a holiday boutique the following day... and it wasn't as successful as my friend (who was selling the most beautiful and luxuriously soft knit hats and cowles) and i were hoping, but i simply loved spending the morning and early afternoon catching up with her and making a couple trades with other vendors. it seems most people don't know what to do with bunting. i guess i will just have to make a mantel before my next craft fair. ha! 

even though i didn't do well in sales i loved every minute of making them. i just love to craft and create, even if no one else likes it. 

what did you do over the weekend? anything fun or crafty? 

xoxo,

tara

what we wore wednesday

thank you so much for all your feedback! that's really helpful and sweet. the majority of you seemed to just want to know what's going on in our lives, probably because you are my personal friend back home in San Diego... wink. i wasn't sure if you were all jonesing for an inspiration board and maybe that was the only reason you stopped by... i want to keep my readers happy! 

i guess you just love me! yes!

here is another "what we wore wednesday" with a little fall theme. being from Southern California i don't remember a big change in scenery when autumn arrives so seeing all the leaves change to my favorite colors makes me so happy inside. yesterday was Big A's class Thanksgiving party and since i'm the room mom i went in to help. i thought it would be fun to wear a fall inspired outfit. (sidenote: NONE of the kindergartners cared... ha!) i decided to take the kids outside for a little acorn hunt before school and some new background shots, since my garage door is getting a little boring. 

Big A is wearing a gifted jacket from Old Navy, gifted pirate tee from Target, skinny Quiksilver jeans and shoes from Nordstrom's rack.

little a is wearing a dress from Old Navy, gifted sweater from Target, knitted tights from Wal-Mart (i love them and want some for myself!), and gifted boots. (second sidenote: OHMAGOH, why does she look 15 in the middle picture??? i'm having visions of her in the future and it's creeping me out... STOP GETTING SO BIG!!!)

i'm wearing head to toe Target (for reals, Target needs to pay me for shopping there, my blog is straight up free advertisement for them because that's the only store i ever go.) minus the Ray Ban sunglasses and Bandolino boots. sorry about the awkward torso area shot. the kids refused to take pictures of me so i had to take them myself. this was the best i could do holding my phone at arms length. also, my hair is looking pretty crazy because i asked Ascot Friday how she styled her hair since it always looks so good... and i did what she said (wash hair at night, blow dry, braid, sleep. then style front in morning. my braid just made my hair look frizzy. i need to work on my french braids.) at least i tried something new?

it was such a fun day helping in Big A's class... big groups of little kids frosting cookies and trying not to eat them is the cutest thing ever. also, turkey drum stick head bands. RIDIC.

notice that this is his favorite face to make for pictures today. 

love and hugs and aheaping pile of pretty leaves to you all!,

tara

the little things

i'm so glad so many of you loved our bedroom! and i think its hilarious that you think i'm funny, seriously... most of the time i cringe when i post stuff and think i'm going to offend someone because i tend to have diarrhea of the mouth/no filter. but i'm also starting to learn when and where its appropriate to use it and also that this is just me, and i'm ok with that. 

maybe it's because now i'm 30 and i am not as self conscious or care as much what other people think of me as i did when i was 20?? i don't know. all i know is i think farting is the funniest thing on earth and i like to decorate with plates. if i live to be 80 years old i expect to be sitting in a rocking chair, surrounded by rows of plates on my walls and laughing at my own farts. and i will be so happy. because i am learning to embrace the things i love. 

wow. crazy tangent. you probably didn't need to know all that. 

anyway, the other thing i'm learning to embrace is my love for bold prints. and knowing what i love when i see it. here are two perfect examples:

i walked into the fabric store, and literally, saw these prints and loved them instantly. then i proceeded to wear my husband down with my constant discussion about the deep love i have for them until he let me buy them. 

now i will make curtains out of them. 

and while i make curtains i'll be watching the Martha Stewart Classic Thanksgiving because i also love Martha and her awkward show where she cannot stand letting anyone else take the lead and it's so awesome that's these moments are documented on tape. 

so there you have it. 

farts. plates. yummy fabric. awkward Martha. 

these are the keys to my heart. 

what can i say? i'm easy to please. 

hearts,

t.

p.s. what do you love? specifically, what do you love about my blog? do you like seeing more posts about my house, my kids, hearing about my farts, cooking, the occasional craft, my marriage relationship {wink}, inspiration boards??? i love my readers and i would love some feedback to know what you love about this little place i call my own on the internet. 

more hearts. 

bedroom tour

one of the items that has always been at the top of our list was to update was our bedroom. in the past 8 years the only nice thing we really purchased for it was the bed. we never really had nice bedding, nice pictures on the wall, nice accessories... nice anything. so we decided it was high time to change that. 

here is a (bad) before picture of just how sad it was. mind you, i had just taken all the plain white sheets off to wash, just for a little added drama. 

note the side tables with nothing but junk on them, the lonely paper hearts above the bed (that will eventually get a new home next to/over something else so as not to be so lonely), the crooked lamp shades, naked window... you get the idea. our room was basically a dumping ground for 1} my clean AND dirty laundry (i hateeeeeeee putting laundry away. i would much rather live out of a basket system and ditch the dresser altogether) 2} items with no real home 3} things we couldn't put away fast enough when guests were coming over. nothing says make yourself at home like a closed bedroom door. am i right or am i right? 

and since it's such a special occasion to have a pretty room i bust out the REAL CAMERA! that's right people, this room does not deserve instagram (GASP!). i know. i know. 

here she is. i think i'll name her something fun like the sunshine chamber, or the rainbow rumpus room... or maybe just something simple like heaven's gates. no? ok.

the quilt is Dwell Studio from Target. the duvet cover and sheets are all from IKEA. also, the night stands (we needed drawers. i was tired of trying to explain to my daughter why she couldn't eat the lube and wanted a place to hide the condoms so my kids wouldn't think they were golden tickets or something. no joke.), and new non-crooked lamp shades. oh... and the curtains are also IKEA! my favorite part! the curtain rod is from Target. i would love to see a little more contrast on the bed and i have some decorative pillows in the works. 

its a little difficult filling up all the space in the room with the little furniture we already have. it's such a massive room with lots of wall space and vaulted ceilings. but this is what we have for now. 

this wall drives me crazy. there is no furniture on it and its huge! i am also working on hanging a couple frames and some more art on it to fill it up. 

the dresser was $50 from craigslist 5 years ago and i sanded it and painted it dark brown and switched out the hardware. my husband would really like to eventually get new dressers... but this one works for now! i got the mirror for $5 (gifted from a friend) at a yard sale and spray painted it a happy color of sunshine yellow. 

please excuse the lame fake flowers. they add color and buying new flowers every week is unfortunately not in my budget. we would love to eventually add more live house plants in here though. i found the quote on Pinterest and decided to make my own art. too bad my husband doesn't care too much for it. the quote says, "i know nothing with any certainty but the sight of the stars make me dream". he says that we know Jesus is the Son of God and is our Savior with certainty... and everything else the Bible says... so he doesn't like the quote. i totally understand so now i have to start over! ha!

he does love this art though, which i also found on Pinterest and made myself. 

the bookshelf displays my little milk glass collection, which was started by my husband's Grandpa Lew. and it just so happens to be the one year anniversary of his passing today. i loved Grandpa Lew. he was spunky and handy and was always so kind to me. he is dearly missed and i can't believe a year has gone by that he hasn't been in our lives. i think it would have pleased him to know that i have continued collecting milk glass. i think of him every time i make a new purchase. 

so there you have it. our little room. it's now comfy and cozy and we love to watch movies in bed on our computer and snuggle with our babies in it and just plain old feel like adults when we walk into it. 

items on list of things to still do:

1} art and pictures on ginormous wall

2} house plants

3} decorative pillows

and way down at the bottom of the list:

4} new dresser

if you could make over your room what would you do? 

sunshine sparkles,

tara