Yesterday was my birthday.

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Christopher & I at Nonie's house

Today, it was back to work. I still can't stop giggling about this conversation I had with my class:

{after reading a picture book about MLK to my students} 

Me --- "Does anyone have any important dreams like Dr. Martin Luther King., Jr. had?"

Kid --- "My dream is that the Goosebumps characters would come alive so we could be friends."

Me --- "Okay... well, that's not real. Does anyone have any real dreams?"

Kid --- "I have a real mouse that helps me read. He whispers me the word when I get stuck."

Me --- "Okay... hmm... so, I'm wondering if anyone has any real, important dreams they could share?"

Kid --- "My dream is that Daily Five was Daily Thousand and we could do that all day!" (Daily Five is our reading/writing/spelling block of the day. I'll take that answer!)

Between that and my kids' guesses that I either turned 1, 16, 19, or 63 yesterday (and TWO amazing birthday treats for snack!)... I'm going to go ahead and say it was a good Monday.

Gift tags, ornaments, and wine charms

I spotted this on pinterest and just HAD to make some. I made enough to give one to everyone we gave gifts, plus had plenty of extras to put on our own tree.

They were very inexpensive, but everyone thought they were adorable! I purchased shower rings ($1.04 at Target!), used yarn I already owned, and found some teeny-tiny gingerbread men and cookie cutters clearanced out at Michaels (less than $0.50 a bag!).

I had some leftover flowers from my yarn wreath, so I used those on a few mini wreaths: 

I also found rick rack trees on pinterest. I made some mini ones to use as gift tags. My students also made them to give to senior citizens at our annual Senior Tea at school.

For one more homemade, simple gift, I made wine glass charms. I purchased a pack of hoop earrings from Michaels, then added a few beads to each: 

There's the little gingerbread man and cookie cutters! 

Merry homemade Christmas! I know it's a bit late, but I'm already pinning things for next year!

I wreath you a merry Christmas

I wanted to make something special for my for my best friend's mom (my second mom!) for Christmas. I've been loving all the yarn wreaths popping up on pinterest and thought it was time to give them a try.

First, I made one for our front door in a fall theme.

When it came time to make one for a present, I was torn about which season/holiday it should be. If I made a Christmas one, she'd have to take it down almost after she received it. I decided to make a white wreath with blue flowers for winter. That way she could keep it up a few extra months.

I came up with this:

As I worked, Christopher came up with the best idea: make my wreath seasonally interchangeable! Seriously, leave it to the least crafty person to come up with the best idea! (Christopher's crazy creative and full of great ideas...even with stuff he has no interest in, like crafts.)

Behind each flower is a spot of velcro for easy removal. I wrapped the winter wreath in a large gift bag, then wrapped the rest of the flowers and directions in a small box.

Here is the finished product with the directions I included with the gift. I hope she loves it!:

Mistaken ownership

Our house is entirely covered in hardwood floors. They are beautiful, old, and recently refinished. Christopher and I just love them, but Telula hasn't been so sure. She slides around and struggles to find a warm spot to lay in the sun. We don't want to cover up the gorgeous floors, but we agree that we need a few rugs to warm up the house and bring the rooms together. I bought our first rug last weekend; a runner for our front hallway.

Within seconds of laying it down, Telula claimed it as hers. Obviously the only reason we would have purchased something soft for the floor would be for her comfort!

We let our pup believe it's hers, even going so far as officially naming it Telula's rug. We may have a spoiled pup on our hands.

2012 Resolutions

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I think I did okay with my resolutions for 2011. It was a good thing I blogged them, or I would have, once again, forgotten them.

This year, my resolutions are similar to those from 2011:

- put God first everyday; go to church every week

- be a fabulous wife to Christopher; fall more in love everyday

- simplify; continue to get rid of unnecessary stuff and focus on what is important

- be a better friend by being the one to call, invite, etc.

- be bikini ready for our honeymoon in April

- blog more often; 2x/week

- do more projects; it's what I love

My overall goal for 2012 is: faith and family first. 

(Of course, that would include friends that have become family!)

Oh, and Christopher's 2012 resolution?

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I kid, I kid.

Happy (Married) New Year

Christopher and I celebrated our first New Years together as a married couple!

I made a "party hat".

We posed in our living room before guests arrived.

I made a bunch of appetizers for cocktail hour(s) before dinner. Telula thought she might like some...

It was the 2nd Annual NYE fancy dinner at a local restaurant.

Our waitor took a not-ready picture...

...and then a ready one.

We waited for the very infamous NYE ball to drop.

We warmed up inside the restaurant after the drop.

Waterfall backdrop photo op:

"Maybe we should try a picture without my top hat?"

Happy 2012!

Telula is my little love. Best puppy ever.

Bryan and his doggy-niece

My brother(in-law)... and those cupboards will eventually have doors. For now, it's really easy to find kitchen goods.

Christopher and his boys... they're a good bunch.