Wait... Christmas isn't in January?

{First off, I have to brag on my friend Maggie, who is basically a celebrity now!!!! Mags is precious, hilarious, super smart and super creative, and she did a guest post for Tatertots and Jello!!!!! Only like THE coolest crafting blog!!! We've known for quite some time how crazy talented she is, but now the whole world knows!! :) So excited for her!! Now onto my lame post...}

I guess you could say I have trouble being "prompt" with my gift-giving. This year was especially bad because I not only decided to make our Christmas cards, but I also made several gifts (not my best decision). Next year we may just go the route of buying cards from Hallmark again- much simpler :) But the gifts have mostly been finished and given out now, so I'm happy about that!  I just had my Christmas celebration with some fun girlfriends this past Thursday, and I loved that it sort of extended the holiday season :) Ashley even still had their Christmas tree up and there was snow outside, so it felt Christmas-y! Here are some of the projects (nothing impressive, mind you) I had fun creating this year:

-My friend, Kitty, made a bunch of these adorable headbands and gave them to us at a Christmas lunch. I loved the idea and since I already knew how to make the rosettes, I told her I was gonna steal the idea and I made a bunch for friends, cousins, and for the girls that Nick and I do Bible studies with at Barboursville school. {One of the younger boys even was insistent on getting a headband too, which cracked me up :) I'm not sure what he plans to do with it, but he said he wanted to send it to his sister, so whatever!}

Here's the one Kitty gave me. LOVE it!!!

And here are some of the ones I made. Awkard pose, I know.

-The memo board I made for my sister. When Mags and I were making our anthro-inspired mirrors, she had trouble with her mirror and so she turned it into a memo board. I think hers turned out even cuter than my mirror! Anyway, so I made one of these for Bethany for a Christmas gift.

 

-I made these letters for Cat and Steph, who are some of my ex-youth group girls who have become some of my best friends :) They're both still in college, and I thought they might like these.

(front)

(back)

*Jerica, I think I copied off of you for these! I loved the letters you made for Jaycie, and so I think when I saw these letters at HL, I decided to make some too! So thanks for the idea!

I also made some necklaces that Little Miss Momma (she's so cute) showed on her blog that were anthro-inspired. I didn't take pictures of mine (she's a way more adorable model anyway), but here's a picture of the first one:

And the second one (which I decided I like much better):

This next one is the color I made mine this color:

I'm still working on these though- I have 2 more to make- maybe in February :)

And last- here are a couple of yarn wreaths. For the record, I think I've had my fill of yarn wreaths for a while (except that I promised 2 to some friends, so I'll finish those.) It's a long story, but Maggie, Courtney and I decided to make several wreaths each for something, but then we didn't end up doing it haha :)  I ended up giving a poinsettia wreath to one of Nick's sisters, Raegan. His parents were here over Thanksgiving, and so when we sent the Christmas gifts home with them, I sent Raegan the wreath so she could have it before Christmas.

Then I had this other random one that's on my door now, since we're in between holidays :) 

I made a few other brooches and hair clips that I've shown on here before, and I'm still working on something for Maggie and Joy haha :) But I am getting started on a fun Valentine's day project that I'll hopefully have finished before Valentine's Day to give to some of my sweet friends (so I can't share it on here until it's finished since some of you might read this! Or maybe not- because it's dumb and boring.)

Finding love on Etsy

Valentine's Day is right around the corner!! :)  I'm trying to start planning ahead this year, because I was so behind with all holiday stuff last year. {I may even still post pictures of our house decorated for Christmas-who knows?!? And maybe I'll do it in April. That's my style.} Anyway, I've been obsessively checking out etsy lately, and they have so many creative gift ideas for Valentine's Day!!

maybe cheesy- but I say romantic :)

This would also be such a cute wedding gift for friends! With the city they met in or if they're moving to a different city as newlyweds.

*the first three are all from palomasnest

This one I saw and couldn't help but think of my sweet friend, Anna. She's in the middle of planning her wedding, and this line is from her favorite poem (which I also love and I'm so glad she reminded me about!), and she's using it in different ways in her wedding. The poem is by e.e. cummings and is so beautiful.

*from TwigsandLace




*both from thecareerscrapper

*from MaisyandAlice

*from alexandraferguson

SO cute!! (And maybe a DIY project??)

*from hoganfe

*both from cutthecakedesigns

I'm obsessed with all the cute things in this girl's shop!!!!  I especially like (and need) one of her address file boxes- but it didn't really go with the "love" theme :) This is such a cool alternative to a traditional guestbook!

*also from palomasnest
What a perfect gift for a bff- it says "You are loved"

*from SignatureBonz
Don't forget about our furry loved ones! Especially if they have as much of a passion for food as Copper does :)

*from theCopperPuppy
This specific item is already sold, but it was saved in my favorites for a long time- so I had to share it :)  I'm sure they could make another one like it if anyone is interested though. I just LOVE this.

*from kikicomin
This one is definitely my favorite of all though!  I love this phrase. Everyone else may read it differently, but to me,  it's a great reminder that we make the choice each day to love our spouse, family, friends, enemies. I love that it's such a definite statement- not based on feelings that may be strong one day and weak the next. It's a decision and a commitment. What a beautiful thought :) I love knowing that even on my very worst days, Nick makes the choice to love me- very cool. Hope you all have a wonderful, love-filled day!!



Pay It Forward: Crafting style

I noticed my friend Sarah's facebook status the other day (because I spend an embarassing amount of time on facebook some days), and I loved her idea.  The status said something to the effect of: "2011 pay-it-forward challenge: The first 5 people who comment on this status, I will make something handmade for you.  But then you have to turn around and post this status and make something handmade for 5 more people (tricky, right??)  The only rules are that it must be handmade and it must be done before the end of 2011." I, of course, did not hesitate to sign up!!!  Then I posted the status on my own facebook, and am now super excited about this project!!!

I feel like I often make crafts and then don't know what to do with them, or I find something adorably inspiring, and then realize I don't need it in my home.  But now I have an excuse to do more crafting!!! {And Nick is, of course, thrilled!!! haha :)}

I knew exactly what I wanted to make for 1 of my friends, so I finished my first project this weekend for my co-worker, Debbie.  Debbie is in charge of all the food stuff at Woodlands and I love talking to her about delicious new recipes one of us has tried.  She's always giving me great ideas and answering my random questions, since I'm still very much a beginner level cook :)  I had seen this idea a few weeks ago, and I was dying to make one!!  I have one that I'm also making my friend Ashley (so I'm sorry if you're seeing this!) as a super-late Christmas gift, and I thought it would be perfect for Debbie too :)  I'm not sure about anybody else, but I LOVE cute recipe cards.  It bugs me to just yank out a page from a magazine or to have the recipe written on plain index cards or a scrap of paper.  Somehow, it makes it more fun for me to cook when it's on a pretty recipe card :)  However.... I also am a messy cook (seriously), so I almost always end up spilling something on my recipe cards.  I love that this craft solves that problem!!
Here's that blogger's version:

{Love the houndstooth!!}

She gives a great step-by-step tutorial.  But for a quick summary, I Mod Podged some pretty paper over an ugly plaque from Walmart.  Then hot glued the paper clip on, made some fabrice roses and hot glued them on also.  That's it!! 
Here's how mine turned out:

I definitely recommend this for any friends who love cooking!! 

{In unrelated but incredibly important news, Auburn plays for the nation title tonight!!!!!!! I'm so FREAKIN excited!!!!  War Eagle!!!!}

Welcome 2011. It's good to have you :)

We all have those crummy days... and yesterday just happened to be one of mine.  A couple of different things happened that really made me sad. {One involved a barely-alive mouse who was suffering and needed to be put out of its misery.  I know, I know- it's ridiculous. But being a former owner of numerous hamsters- my favorites being GusGus and Duncan- I have a soft spot in my heart for rodents. And he was a cute little thing. Plus, I cry sometimes just at the thought of an animal suffering- so this wasn't good.)  The other "occurrence" was something I had to do that required me to dig up a lot of buried, unpleasant memories and feelings from years ago.

2005 was, without a doubt, the hardest, most painful year of my life.  There's no need to go into any details- I know that everyone has had terrible things that they've gone through- many I'm sure that were much worse than mine.  So I don't want to make this a pity party.  But anytime I think back on that year, I can just feel the sadness, depression, betrayal, lonliness that I experienced.  But in the same breath, I can also say that it was the most wonderful year of growing with my Savior.  Even though I felt hopeless and worthless and disappointment in some of my relationships, I knew I was loved and being carried through it all by my Jesus.  I remember thinking that I would never fully heal, and I would never be the same person that I had been before.  But it's amazing how God can mend a broken heart and bring about His plans to be even better than what I had planned for myself. 

Coming into 2011, it's almost like that time in my life is a bizarre dream- like I can't believe it really happened.  The heaviness I felt has been completely lifted, and I truly feel like He's redeemed my whole "story".  I know there will be more heartache to come in my future, but I also know He has countless blessings to come as well.  I can't wait to see what 2011 has in store for Nick and me :)
*{And hopefully it will involve a lot more sewing, more frequently cooking, running more miles, being more organized, and being more deliberate about quiet time. Just in case you were expecting this to be about resolutions, I decided to slip those in :)  Those are just a few of the things I'd like to work on in the coming year!}

Homemade Christmas Cards :)

I have been a crappy blogger since Thanksgiving- and now I'm putting up 2 posts in 1 day. But hopefully I'll get back into the swing of things after Christmas!  I think my time has mostly been taken up with making our Christmas cards this year haha :)  I saw a cute idea on flickr and tried to make a similar version, and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.  It was just a little more time-consuming than I expected though!  I think I ended up making around 45 total. Here are the cards I found and LOVED:

And here's how mine turned out:

I hate how the pictures turned out so grainy, but I was pretty happy with how the actual cards looked :) Not as fancy as the ones I copied, but I still liked them. I'm gonna try to get some better pictures to post on here. 

And here's what the backside said:

It just took me forever to decide on which quote to use on the cards!  I probably could have started about a month earlier if I would've made up my mind sooner :)  In case it's too hard to read, it says:

"The Son of God became a man, that men could become the sons of God. {C.S. Lewis}

Wishing you a wonderful Christmas and New Year!!  Hoping that the peace and love of our

Savior will be a constant presence in your life in the coming year.

Much Love, Nick, Joy, and Copper Haser"

I do love C.S. Lewis :)  Merry Christmas!!!!

Incredibly belated Thanksgiving post

I finally finished paying off my student loan yesterday!!!! :)  What a great feeling!!  Take that, Sallie Mae!!!  So I'm pumped to mark that off my 101 list. 

{I wrote this 3 weeks ago, but am just now posting it- whoops.}
Thanksgiving was awesome.  Nick's parents came in Wednesday night and left early on Sunday.  That maybe would be stressful for most people, but I seriously have amazing in-laws, and the time went by way too fast.  They took us to dinner on Wednesday, and then his mom was so helpful all day on Thursday while I was cooking.  {Plus, she brought THE MOST amazing cornbread for dinner!!!!!!  I like just about any cornbread and usually can't tell much of a difference- but this was incredible!!!  One of her friends in Memphis got it from her nanny that raised her- so it's some true southern cornbread.  I'll have to post the recipe on here.  It really is worth it to make it from scratch!!}
Anyway, she cleaned up the dishes the whole time while I cooked, and then she and my mom took care of everyone's plates after dinner.  Then we did some shopping on Friday and watched the Auburn game (War eagle!!)  Saturday I got to see one of my bffs Lindsay and she went to lunch with Betty (Nick's mom) and me.  Then we went to dinner on Saturday night to Frankie D's, and then said goodbye on Sunday morning. 
Here are a few pictures from the Thanksgiving festivities:

{This is my attempt to recreate the garland I was crushing on here and that I mentioned on my last post}

{Please ignore the terrible looking kitchen chairs.  I'm trying to figure out what I want to do with them- either stain them darker, or use this next picture as an inspiration}

{I believe this is a picture from Martha Stewart. I love that color for the chairs!!  Hopefully I'll spruce ours up to look like that soon.}

Here's a picture of everyone together.  Just wish my Poppi had been feeling better and made it.

And here's our little family :)

I wrote this post about 3 weeks ago, and just never published it.  So it's much more fitting now to wish you a merry Christmas than to say that I hope you had a happy Thanksgiving :)

Thanksgiving inspiration

Nick's parents are coming here for Thanksgiving, and I'm SOOO excited!!!  His parents are really the most wonderful in-laws a girl could ever ask for.  They've truly been nothing but a blessing from the beginning, and I'm so excited that we'll get to spend several days with them in just a week and a half!! :)  That being said, I need to get my butt in gear and start buying all the food (because we're also hosting my parents, my Poppi, and my sister and brother-in-law, meaning 9 people total!), AND I need to start making the house look festive!!  I know I don't "have" to do this- they'd be so sweet and appreciative even if the house was all cluttered up (as it usually is).  But I would like to add some fun little touches to make it feel "home-y" and special.  Here's one of my FAVORITE Thanksgiving ideas from Friday's child:

How adorable is that???  She used it for a fall baby shower :)  I could never have come up with something so cute!

I also would like to paint our huge living room area before they come, and do some sort of painting or staining to our table before they get here next Wednesday... not to mention about a hundred other little projects I'd like to attempt before then :)  So we'll see what actually gets done!!  Oh, and I'm also working on homemade Christmas cards this year- about 50 of them.  Geez louise.  Why did I not start some of this back in July???