Show Me Your Christmas Trees // Holiday Cheer Link Party

I've been waiting for this day to show you our girly Christmas tree and to see yours!  You can link up your trees here with me and Courtney (A Thoughtful Place) and we'll be featuring some of our favorites soon.  :)

Varying shades of pink and red adorned our tree this year.  Applying the ornaments was extra fun because I had a little helper and I pretty much left all his ornaments where he put them, even if they are a little clustered together on the bottom.  But, it makes me smile seeing them like that, and makes me feel thankful.  I tied a fuschia ribbon around the tree, coupled with a string of red wooden berries that I hot glued together to make one long strand. 

Most of our ornaments are from Hobby Lobby, Lowe's, or Target.  A few are from Crate & Barrel.  The red tree skirt with white snowflake trim is from Lowe's. 

I vowed not to buy any more wrapping paper this year, opting instead to use up what we have first.  I tried to find paper that coordinated with our tree colors for gifts.  

This faux pré-lit tree from Hobby Lobby is still going strong after 6 years!  Some of the lights have burned out and I had to add more, but other than that, she's still good!  

You can see Christmas tree inspiration from years past HERE and HERE. 

Speaking of trees, you can have one planted for FREE, just by "liking" New Leaf Energy on Facebook.  Thank you so much!  We have planted over 200 trees so far and are going for 1,000! Go HERE to read all about it. 

'Tis the Season to Be Green

I'll admit I'm feeling kinda sheepish about this post. See, I've been asked to share how I am helping spread my eco-conscious ways with the next generation. Although I try to be a good example to my son for green-living by recycling, not buying bottled water, not letting the faucet run unnecessarily, using energy efficient light-bulbs, and turning lights off when we're not using them, I know there is so much more I could be doing!



New Leaf Energy (which offers 100% renewable energy to Texas) is doing something very cool: for every LIKE on their FACEBOOK page, they will PLANT 1 TREE! I think that is awesome. This initiative ends on December 23, so please go HERE to "like" the New Leaf Energy Facebook page today. Let's plant some trees!

Partnering with New Leaf Energy has caused me to take a look at how I can be friendlier to our planet and a better example for my son.   I still use paper towels probably more than I should (as opposed to using a dishtowel), I take too long a shower, and use plastic tupperware and baggies. I've started switching to all-natural house cleaners, but haven't completely. These are things I can start doing today.



How do you instill good environmental habits in your kids? I'd love to hear your tips.

One thing I do well is encourage my son to play outside and play with him. We go to the park pretty often when the weather is nice and all have bikes to ride around the neighborhood. I know staying inside playing iPad all day isn't good!

I can track how many times people click the link in today's post, so I'll keep you posted.  Do you think we could get 1,000 by December 23? I bet we can if everyone that reads this clicks HERE!  Thank you! :) 

*Thanks to New Leaf Energy for sponsoring today's post and for planting trees! I'm happy to be able to spread this message.

Christmas Craft- Jingle Bell Door Hangers & Sticker Magnets

Happy holiday craft day! Today, you can link up your craft projects at Hi Sugarplum and Michaela Noelle. I like doing crafty things, but only if they don't require a high level of difficulty or lots of time.  My jingle bell door hangers are easy and quick- perfect holiday craft for me!  I used a bangle bracelet for the ring around the door, then tied the bells with ribbon and hot glued a decorative faux branch on top.  I got the bells at Michaels (6 for $2.50 on sale and they have other colors too). 

I made the second door hanger the same way, with silver bells and red and green ribbon and faux berries on top.  To personalize it, I added a red glittery chipboard letter.  

When I was at Michaels buying the bells, I picked up these cardstock stickers and thought they'd make cute magnets for the fridge.  They have little stickys on the back (the whole back isn't sticky) so I just affixed round magnets to the sticky part.  I hot glued a magnet to the bow. 

I never thought I'd be a fridge magnet kind of gal, because I used to like to keep the fridge totally clear, but once my preschooler started bring home his art, I couldn't resist.  (I still clear the fridge once in a while).  But, these magnets are festive!

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Baldwin Hardware, which sells decorative hardware, plumbing and lighting, is hosting a giveaway on their Facebook page.  To enter, like the Baldwin Hardware Facebook page and then pin an image to enter the contest. Entrants will get bonus entries for sharing the contest with their friends.

1st Prize:  $10,000 worth of their Estate line, which can be ordered from a Baldwin showroom and includes professional installation.

2nd Prize: $2,500 worth of their Reserve line, which can be selected from their website.

3rd Prize: $500 worth of their Prestige line, available at retailers like Home Depot and Lowes.  

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On Honey We're Healthy:  Are we drinking enough water and how much is enough? 

Organizing the Toys

I was starting to freak out a little realizing on Friday night just how close we are to Christmas and how much shopping I still have to do.  Do you feel the same way?  My Christmas cards aren't even mailed yet!  So, I spent some time online this weekend and accomplished so much.  I feel a ton better and am getting so exciting knowing I have gifts for my friends and family on the way!  Macy's is having a big 25% off sale and free shipping with guaranteed delivery by Christmas if you order by December 21.  One girlfriend is getting this and this:) And another is getting this.  I'm giddy to give these gifts!

Amazon is my other lifesaver and since y'all recommended Prime, I signed up and get free 2-day shipping.  This is making my life much easier. I especially like shopping for toys.  James is going to be a very happy boy on Christmas morning! 

The other thing that's been nagging at me is wanting to get the toys under control so that we could see what James has and so he can get to them easier and then also enjoy the new ones at Christmas.  We keep most of the toys in bins and two toy boxes but all the toys got scrambled together, so a major dump-out and reorganization was in order. 

I had to send James upstairs to play so I could organize everything.  He kept finding "new" things to play with, so he wasn't much help in organizing.  I'm still just keeping most of his toys in large baskets, organized by toy type.  The "miscellaneous" toys were put into four bins and placed inside the toy boxes.  The rest of the bins hide behind the couch, in front of the window.   

The basket of cars is hiding behind our leather chair.  

My solution for keeping the puzzles organized (and James loves building puzzles) was to put them in the media cabinet.  I'm hoping this helps keep the puzzle pieces together.  They were all jumbled up in a basket before. 

Now I can relax in the living room again.  Nice!

I'm excited to show you more of our Christmas decor soon.  You can see that I brought in some red in the living room and added garland and white lights to the stairway banister.  It looks so pretty at night!

Are you getting the toys organized in preparation for Christmas  too?  

And don't forget to link up your holiday crafts on Tuesday at Hi Sugarplum and Michaela Noelle.  See you there!

On Honey We're Healthy:  Are we drinking enough water and how much is enough? 

Gifts for Home

So far, I've bought Christmas gifts for my son, nieces, and one for a sassy girlfriend of mine, and that's it.  If you're looking for a gift for the home decor lover or hostess, here are my picks.  Enjoy!

Linen Monogram Napkins (on sale)

Stag Jewelry Holder

Agate Green Glass Box

Le Creuset 2.75-Quart Dutch Oven, Dijon

Made With Love Wooden Cutting Board

Mercury Glass Vases (on sale)

Agate Bookends - Blue (similar)

Chevron Latte Mug

Navy Ikat Dinnerware

Softest Throw Blanket (you can have this monogrammed too)

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On Honey We're Healthy: I'm sharing my healthy beef burrito and fresh pico de gallo recipe. 

Christmas Decor in the Kitchen

You can easily spread Christmas cheer throughout your home, into the kitchen, by adding just a few decorative items, things you probably already own.  When I finally invested in a Le Cruset dutch oven a few years ago, I purposely bought red because I thought it would look so good during the holidays.  And it does! :) Even if you don't have any red pots or pans, you might have some colorful bowls or dishes you could incorporate into your decor.  

The red tray was moved out of my son's room temporarily to add more pops of color.  I found the cookie jar and wreath at Hobby Lobby.  I hung the wreath with an adhesive hook and figured I can take the wreath down while cooking if I need to.  Flowers or poinsettia plants would be great too. 

The towels are from Target and were hanging in our bathroom last year.  You don't have to keep putting things in their same ole place- have fun moving them around!  The red timer is perfect here too and gets a lot of use.  

The olive oil and balsamic vinegar are sitting on a wood tray with a sprig of faux berries.  Easy and pretty. 

And our thankful tree was exchanged for faux pine branches and berries from Hobby Lobby.  I used a foam block inside the urn to keep the branches positioned where I wanted them and to give them more height. 

I'm decorating our open kitchen shelving too, but I'm not quite finished with it.  Do you extend your holiday decor into the kitchen too?

Don't forget to link up your holiday mantels on Wednesday at Ten June & Our Fifth House.

You can see our "mantel" this year HERE.

And thank you to Kate (Centsational Girl) for including me in her Holiday Gift Guide this year and to Kristen (The Hunted Interior) for having me participate in her Ornament Round-up feature.  

On Honey We're Healthy: I'm sharing my favorite healthy hair product that helped repair my damaged hair. 

Snowy Aqua & Mint Mantel

Being December and all, I think it's time to officially welcome Christmas into my home! I'm doing different colors schemes in different areas of our house this year, and the dining room is getting decked out in aqua, mint, white, silver and gold. 

The mint inspiration came from a new snowflake pillow that I paired with a white faux fur pillow inside our HomeGoods basket.

Since I recently made the "The most wonderful time of the year" art in a similar color, I decided to bring it into the room.  

I used items I already had in my house, but included two new items from Hobby Lobby: the NOEL letters and the reindeer.

I considered painting the letters like I did for my LOVE art, but decided I liked them the way they were sold.  The natural color balances out the bright aqua and mint. 

The reindeer did get a coat of silver and gold spray paint.  I also sprinkled silver glitter on him. You can find inexpensive reindeers here, here, here, here, and here.

Years ago, I bought a bunch of faux snow from Pottery Barn during an after-Christmas sale for just a couple of dollars and I reuse it year after year.  It's one of my favorite discount buys.  

Filling a large bowl with colorful ornaments is about the easiest way to add a festive decorative touch to your home.  I like to add larger ornaments on the bottom, then layer in smaller ornaments to fill in the gaps.  This mini tree is a favorite of mine because it's got gold tipped branches and a burlap wrapped base.  I added in some snowflake ornaments for added bling.

I've had the silver lanterns for a couple of year now and really like the simple shape and how the door opens so I can fill them.  It would probably be better if the top came off because it's a little tricky to get the ornaments and snow in then, quickly shut the door before it falls out!

Have you started your Christmas decorating yet?  You can link up your mantels to our Holiday Cheer Link Party on Wednesday!

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On Honey We're Healthy:  I'm sharing my secret for healthy hair.