Home Again

Well Christmas is over and the new year is quickly upon us! Did you have a fantastic Christmas?  I sure did! I don’t think it could have been any better! We had a terrific trip to the Carolinas! We traveled through South Carolina, on our way to Charlotte, and spotted this:

“The Peach”

The kids thought it was just awesome. We even bought some Peach Cider and Muscadine Cider that I’m very anxious to try!

We woke up on the morning after Christmas to 4 inches of snow! What a treat!

What was the highlight of my trip?

Yep, my first time in IKEA.  It.was.amazing. I didn’t want to leave. We don’t have one near us so when I found out there was one in Charlotte, I had to make time to go. Awesome.

The kids ate free!

It was the little things that made me happy. Like the “shadow people” (as my daughter called them), welcoming us to the bathrooms.

This turned out to be a pretty good picture…except for the grouchy little one who didn’t want his siblings in the photo with Mama.

How was your Christmas? Did you get what you asked for? Are you ready for the New Year?!  2011, I’m ready for you!

~Rebekah

Christmas is Nearly Here!

Thank you all so much for leaving such nice comments on yesterday’s post! You all are such a blessing and so kind for taking the time to comment. I appreciate each and every one of you! I think I have a plan now and more on that in another post.

Is everyone ready for Christmas? You know it’s this Saturday, right? I had to remind myself of that. I cannot believe it’s nearly here! We will be traveling to Salisbury, N.C. to visit my family on my mother’s side. I love riding out there! We hit several major cities along the way…Nashville, TN…Knoxville, TN…Asheville, NC…and Charlotte, NC! We ride through the Smoky Mountains with long tunnels to get there!

Have you ever heard the song “Over the River & Through the Woods”? We sang it each time we made the trip. Here is a special treat for you!

It’s funny, I never knew all the words until just now, ha!

We have made this trip almost every single year since I was born. The Smoky Mountains are gorgeous! I would love to make them my permanent home…one of these days.

source: TheGreatSmokyMountains.org

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I’m about finished with the Christmas gifts. I bought most of them. Amazon.com is a great site for Christmas gifts! I scored some AMAZING deals this year!

I did make a few gifts as well. MarthaStewart.com offers tons of free printables! I printed several of the Cook’s Helper sets (set of 3), laminated them and added magnets to the back!

source: MarthaStewart.com

I also made several batches of the Cinnamon Honey Butter that TidyMom shared!! It’s been a big hit!

source: TidyMom.net

And I might just have to make this Raspberry Trifle over at PaulaDeen.com, for Christmas Dinner!

source: PaulaDeen.com

I am quite certain that I could dive head first into this dessert! 

It calls for Sherry. Does anyone know if that could be substituted for something else?

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My Christmas prayer for you is to have a safe, Merry Christmas and to remember that He is the Reason for EVERY Season!

I’m feeling a bit emotional lately. Unmotivated. Unorganized. Crazy.

Do you ever feel like that you want to remove everything from your house and throw it out the front door?

That’s me right now. My house is small; 2 bedroom, one bath, combined kitchen/living room. I have 3 kids. 2 boys, one girl. Did you notice I said TWO bedrooms? So where does the husband and I sleep? In the living room on a fold-out bed every.single.night. I’m so sick of it. My house has potential. It’s an A-frame. The top 2 floors are unfinished. Our bedroom will be upstairs when we get it finished. WHEN we get it finished. That will be awhile. I’m about to go bonkers with all this Christmas stuff crammed into my living area. I can’t even seem to enjoy the season right now. I’m trying. I start to feel a little joy and then I trip over the manger scene. That joy is completely gone in a split second!

Oh well. I’ll get through it. But once Christmas is over, I’m starting over. Fresh. Organized. I have to keep my sanity!

 

{A Handmade Ornament} & Share Your Own!

A few weeks back, I participated in Stephanie Lynn’s Handmade Ornament Event at Under the Table and Dreaming. I made a simple Twine Wrapped Christmas Star.

I’ll post the tutorial in a little bit. *Update* You can see how I made it {HERE}.

Until then, take a look at more handmade ornaments from last week’s Christmas Party!

{Painted Glass Ornament} Christine & Co.

{Hand Glittered Ornament} Not Just Paper and Glue

{Handprint Ornaments} Super Stinky Boys

{Satin Ornaments} Atelier Caroline

{Christmas Stars} Naturally Me Creations

{Wool Scrap Ornaments} Creative Passage

{Beaded Angels & Stars} Mummy Crafts

So what about you? Have you made any ornaments to share with us?

 

Exciting Review to Come!

I will probably need a couple of flat screen TV stands after Santa comes to visit.

Santa, are you listening?

Are you taking the hint?

And while you’re here, how about bringing one of these:

one of these:

a couple of these:

oh and one of these!:

*CSN Stores contacted me and asked if I’d like to review a product from one of their 200+ online stores! Can’t wait to show you what I choose!!

{Fresh From the Freezer Lessons}

I quickly wanted to share with you a FREE online video class about cooking for the freezer! It is called FRESH FROM THE FREEZER. I think it’s really great and I sure am learning a lot! Shelley (the owner of the site) has promised 20 videos (she’s already at episode 18) AND she’ll release more video lessons as there are more subscribers!

A few things that Shelley has covered:

• Can you freeze buttermilk?
• cheese?
• avocados?
• bananas?
• quiche?
• apple pie?

She also shows you how to make:

• homemade chicken broth
• perfect roasted chicken
• freezer frittata
• homemade spaghetti sauce
• and more!

So why don’t you head over to FRESH FROM THE FREEZER and subscribe to Shelley’s lessons? They are FREE! And very entertaining! I look forward to each lesson and I really want her to release more!

{CLICK HERE} to subscribe to FRESH FROM THE FREEZER and begin watching the video lessons right away! I think you will really enjoy them!

{My Favorite Thingz}

It’s that time of year where everyone is letting everyone else know their favorite products. I think it’s a great way to learn about new products, or maybe some that have been around awhile and you’re just hesitant to give it a try without feedback. So I thought it would be fun to share my favorites…

Rebekah’s Favorite

         Thingz

(as of Friday @ 12:55 p.m. This list may change at anytime without warning)

1} Dr. Pepper - liquid sanity. No really, sanity.

2}  Mary Kay Timewise Cleansing Bar and Moisturizer – the only products that keeps my skin clear. I’ve tried billions.

 

3} Amazing Hanger – Just last week, I ran across these at the Dollar General Store. I bought 2 boxes had have since went back for 3 more. We do not have a lot of closet space and these hangers have allowed me to have a nice, neat organized closet!

4}  Tim McGraw – I’m a southern girl…whadya expect? Even if I wasn’t, I mean come on, just look at that hat!

 

5}  Pampered Chef Easy Read Measuring Cups – I use this set multiple times a day. They had me at “microwave safe”!

 

6}  The Pampered Chef Garlic Press – I love to cook with fresh garlic so this gadget gets a lot of use.

 

7}  Cottonelle Toilet Paper – What? We all use it. Might as well have a favorite.

 

8}  EdenPURE Heater – This is our 2nd winter of using it. It heats both our living room & kitchen and has saved us money on our heating bill. It is safe, cool to the touch and keeps us cozy. And it has a remote. Plus, it MUST be good ‘cause it’s recommended by Al from Home Improvement.

 

9} Dr. Pepper  - This is a long post and I’ve already drank the first one.

10} HoMEDICS Sound Spa – We’ve had this particular one for years and I CANNOT sleep without it. My 3-year-old threw it in a bucket of water and we thought it was ruined. But after it dried out, it worked fine again! (I am not suggesting that you should throw yours in a bucket of water!) We’ll even stick it in a bag and take it on our trips. We may not sleep in comfortable beds on vacation, but at least it will sound like home!

 

And of course, I couldn’t leave out my 3 most favorite and important things!…

My beautiful (and only) 10 yr-old daughter,

 

My witty, 7 yr-old  middle child,

 

and my baby, who is no longer a baby. He’s a monkey and climbs everything. He’s sitting on the back of the recliner as I type this…

 

There you have it! My favorite thingz! Well half of them anyway!

**Tim McGraw did not compensate me in any way to mention his name and put his face on my post. I did it purely out of the goodness of my heart.**