Counting down the hours...till 2012

Wow, I have been seriously missing in action over Christmas and I apologize for that!  We had a great time visiting family and friends in Missouri, but it was also exhausting!  I was going back and forth every other day between my family and Justin's, meeting up with friends, getting a stomach bug, helping my sister move, and driving back down to TX with only 3 people, but still 5 dogs!  Does that not sound like a busy week?!?  :) 

So what are your plans for tonight? Me, I'm just going to hang with friends in a casual relaxing get together. After all the craziness of Christmas, I am excited to get to just chill with wonderful friends this evening!

Have a FANTASTIC New Year's Eve wherever you might be!

Now, if I was going to a New Year's Party where I needed to dress up, THIS is what I would wear! I love this look, and I'm crazy about sparkle! What better time to wear it than New Year's Eve! (You can bet I will still have something sparkly on regardless of my casual event!)

From kristenkeehnle.polyvore.com

Happy New Year's to all and keep your eye out for my 2012 resolutions tomorrow!!

~ Elle

Roadtrip Home for Christmas

We are headed home to Missouri for Christmas! And let me tell you I don't think we could fit one more item in this car! We've got 4 people (me, my husband, and two sisters), and then of course we all have dogs! Two chihuahuas, two maltipoos, and an australian shepherd mix! This is going to be insane! What are we thinking!

The things we do to visit family for the holidays! :) This drive keeps making me think of the song I'll Be Home For Christmas. No matter what the travel conditions/arrangements are we will make it home for Christmas!

I'll Be Home For Christmas

I'm dreamin' tonight of a place I love

Even more then I usually do
And although I know it's a long road back
I promise you...

I'll be home for Christmas
You can count on me
Please have snow and mistletoe
And presents under the tree
Christmas Eve will find me
Where the love light beams
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams

Christmas Eve will find me
Where the love light beams
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams
If only in my dreams

 

 

 

Spreading the Love: Liebster Award

Spread the love this holiday season!!

 

You can imagine how pleasantly surprised I was when Ashley from Rustic Living honored me with the Liebster award! This award recognizes up and coming bloggers. I feel quite honored by Ashley's thoughtfulness!


 

I’m also very excited to pass the award on to 5 more up and coming blogs!
I have thoroughly enjoyed following these lovely blogs, and I hope you will pay them a visit!

Feminine Unique New
Wholesome Fashion
Southern Inspired
lambe & blonde
Contemporary Harbor

If you have been awarded the coveted Liebster award, here’s what’s next:
1. Choose five up and coming blogs with less than 200 followers to award
2. Show your thanks to the blogger who gave you the award by linking back to them.
3. Post the award on your blog. (Be sure to link back to the 5 blogs you awarded so that others can visit them.)

 

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On another note...I've been thinking a lot about the holiday season. With all the stress of shopping for the right gifts, wondering if you missed anyone, wondering how much money your spending...It has made me realize something. I would be perfectly happy excluding gifts altogether!
My holiday passes in a whirlwind of having to shop in a crazed mall where everyone is out for themselves. I end up realizing it is a week till Christmas and I've barely enjoyed the Christmas season! What happened to focusing on the birth of Jesus, listening to Christmas music, baking cookies, driving around looking at lights, etc! I've been so caught up trying to get everything accomplished that I haven't been able to enjoy the spirit of it all!


This year I just want to give the gift of a smile...to make others smile...to do things for others that they can't help do anything else BUT smile! I am going to take a step back from all the chaos, take a deep breath, and find lots of little reasons to smile!

Gifts are nice...but knowing someone loves you and loves spending time with you is even better!

 

 

  Don't forget to spread the warmth and love of the holiday season.  Find a way this Christmas to make someone truly smile!

 

 

 

Have a Greenery White Christmas!

I have always decorated in a more traditional red, green, and gold theme for Christmas, but this year I wanted to change it up.

A new theme for the new house! With the living room being a lovely cream I thought some nice green accents would look lovely for Christmas! 

Here is my inspiration!

What is your Christmas style?

Weekly Cravings: Bedazzled

Ok...so I am starting to fall in love with these shoes. Prior to this I have not been a fan of the new bulky style, but I think the sequins are bedazzling me!  What do you think of these shoes?

Danielle from Shoedazzle.com

Love or Hate them??

Winter Blues

Every winter,
When the great sun has turned his face away,
The earth goes down into a vale of grief,
And fasts, and weeps, and shrouds herself in sables,
Leaving her wedding-garlands to decay -
Then leaps in spring to his returning kisses.
~Charles Kingsley

I must admit I'm not a big fan of winter.  The lack of warmth and sunshine put me in quite a mood for days at a time.  I need sunshine!  I already miss it and this is just the beginning of winter! 

Please Texas, bring back your nice warm sunny days! I want to sit out on my patio barefoot, sipping tea again!

Unfortunately I just looked at the forecast for the rest of the week and there is no sun...only clouds and rain...

So here is what I plan to do...

Start a fire.

Cozy up under a warm furry blanket.

Pottery Barn Faux Fur Ribbed Throw  is currently on sale for $99 (originally $149).

While sipping on some hot chocolate.

Old Fashioned Hot Cocoa recipe

 Maybe I'll listen to Christmas music or watch Pride and Prejudice as well!  Anything to get away from the renovation projects looming over my head!

I will leave you with a nice thought...I don't want to leave you totally depressed about winter!

Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire:  it is the time for home.  

~Edith Sitwell

Color Me Green!

So the verdict is in!  I am painting the kitchen cabinets white like I originally planned!  I needed the outside opinions to help me clear my head!  I think I had been staring at that wood so long I was starting to think it was pretty!  My head...and vision...have cleared now!  Those cabinets definitely give that kitchen a dated 70's look! 

(See Renovation Madness for photos of the outdated kitchen!)

Now that I've decided on the white cabinets my husband is going to redo the doors, and add new hardware to give them an updated look!  

If only I could choose the wall color! I never realized choosing a green would be so hard!  Here are some sample photos I am using as inspiration!

 

  My kitchen has a garden window that I plan on having a lovely potted herb garden sit.

Wish me luck as I pick out my green walls! Hopefully I will have the kitchen painted before the week ends!

Weekly Cravings!

I am totally craving this GORGEOUS green Currey and Company Goddess Chandelier for my dining room! Unfortunately this oh so gorgeous piece runs $2631.00! I wonder if I could find something similar much more in my budget...

Renovation Madness

Phew....We are finally moved into the new house!! Halleluah! I thought it would never happen. The last two weeks have passed in such a blur I don't even know what day it is anymore!

 Here are some pics of the new house!

 The previous owners were major LSU fans...we plan on painting the purple asap!

 I love the covered patio area! I plan on putting some nice comfy outdoor seating here!

 That bench below is going to get replaced with a lovely hammock!

The moment we walked into that door the demolition began!

 Left: listing photo, Right: Justin & Corey ripping the built-in out as soon as we walk in the door!

 Left: listing photo, Right: The kitchen after the built-in has been ripped out!

We thought we could just paint the kitchen...but unfortunately it was latex paint over wallpaper! You have to use an oil base to paint over wallpaper!  Oh and it gets WORST!  I started stripping the painted wallpaper only to find out that there was a layer of mud and more wallpaper under the top layer of paint and wallpaper!  Seriously!?!?  After spending a whole day stripping wallpaper, my husband and I decide to just remove the drywall and start from scratch!  (Now, normally I would be mad that I wasted a whole day removing wallpaper, but I still had another days worth to do!)

Now my poor husband is stuck floating drywall and mudding...something he HATES to do!

The kitchen before we got our hands on it...

...and the kitchen in its current state!

(Please help me decide...should I keep the cabinets natural or paint white? I'm so torn!)

The living room, which we thought would take 2 days, took a whole week to paint! We painted the walls, trim, fireplace, and ceiling! And let me tell you it takes a lot of time to edge around all those beams! But we finally got it done! 

I had a lot of opposition in my decision to paint the living room off white.  I am glad I stuck with my decision! I chose Creamy White Behr paint and I love it! It is exactly the warm white I was going for! (FYI, you would be amazed how difficult it is to pick out the RIGHT white!)

Here I am loosing my mind amongst all the whites and creams!

 

There is still SO MUCH to do, but at least we aren't running back and forth between houses anymore! 

Thankful Words

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

I hope you have a lovely thanksgiving day full of family or friends.
What will you spend your Thanksgiving doing? Any family traditions?

I will be heading to the demolition zone at the new house until noon, and then off to my sister's for a wonderful Thanksgiving meal!  Our usual tradition demands watching parades in the morning, cooking, snacking on summer sausage, cheese, and crackers. Unfortunately with all the renovations going on I won't be able to watch the parades in the morning... :( 

My husband's family always plays football on Thanksgiving day! This is where I usually put my high heel spike boots and cream furry hat and coat in order to get out of playing! Sorry, but football is not my really my thing!  
Guess which one is me...!

The day after Thanksgiving we usually go shopping and put up the Christmas tree! I have a feeling that will be happening a little later this year! To much going painting, gutting, and mudding going on!!

I hope your Thanksgiving day is full of reasons to give thanks! I will leave you with these words of wisdom!

  "When we lose one blessing, another is often most unexpectedly given in its place."

C.S. Lewis  

 

"Count your blessings. Once you realize how valuable you are and how much you have going for you, the smiles will return, the sun will break out, the music will play, and you will finally be able to move forward the life that God intended for you with grace, strength, courage, and confidence."

Og Mandino 

 

"And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts... And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."

Colossians 3:15-17