Words To Get You Through

For some of us, the Christmas season marks a time of both great joy and great sadness. For those of you who are currently going through a rough patch, for those who are wishing a certain someone(s) was there to celebrate with, or for those who are feeling nervous about the year ahead, this post is for you. I've been saving these little sayings for awhile now, just waiting for the perfect time to bring them out. They all mean a little something different to me, so hopefully at least one will resonate with each of you who sees this.

Decking the Halls

Christmas is almost here! Woooooooooo!

In the meantime, I have been daydreaming about how I will decorate when I get a place of my own someday (can't wait!). Here are a few of the ideas already making me excited for next year's holidays.

Merry Christmas! :}

{white + silver+ reindeer + branches + mini trees...love it all}

{a great way to add some Christmas to the bedroom}

{the perfect front door set-up}

{the front door from the inside}

{a genius tradition: hang stockings on mum and dad's bed, so Christmas morning the kiddies come in to snuggle then open up their stockings}

{pinecone trees}

{and finally, a great way to decorate for New Year's: silver ornaments hanging from pretty ribbon}

Some Lovely Things

Hello there, folks! I'm back, and I hope everyone is as excited about the holidays as I am! Here are a few of the [many] holiday-ish things brightening up my world lately.

S'mores Bars

Happy Thanksgiving! 

So this is what I made for Thanksgiving 2012: this s'mores bars recipe. Man, they were good! But man, they were soooo rich! 

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3 king-sized Hershey's milk chocolate bars 
1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme/fluff

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and both sugars until light. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt. Add this to the butter mixture and mix at a low speed until it's all mixed together (we'll call this your "dough").

Cover the bottom of the pan with an even layer of your dough. Place chocolate bars over dough. Three king-sized Hershey’s bars should fit perfectly side by side, but break the chocolate (if necessary) to get it to fit in a single layer no more than 1/4 inch thick. Spread chocolate with marshmallow creme or fluff. Place remaining dough in a single layer on top of the fluff. (This part is a little tricky...we tried placing the dough in small globs on top of the marshmallow, then spreading the globs into each other. It sort of worked, especially once we decided to grease the spoon we were using). I'm not sure if we just did a bad job of splitting the dough in half, or if the recipe did not create enough dough, because we did not have enough dough to cover the top. Sooo, improvising, we sprinkled on some more graham crackers. 

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

The Wrap

Well hello there folks! Can you believe it is Thanksgiving week? I am flabbergasted that finally I can say "it's the holidays"! I love this time of year...the malls are decorated with over-sized Christmas decorations, public places are starting to throw in a Christmas song or two, people are starting to string up Christmas lights, and there are holiday inspired treats and scents to be found everywhere.

So here you have it, an update on all things enjoyable that I'm thankful for this past week or so.

{an awesome note some strangers left on my car}

{a Starbucks date, complete with sweets and a gingerbread chai}

{a super fantastic view on a fun night out}

{nothing like a not-so-healthy late night snack with friends}

{and last, but most certainly not least, an ode to the struggle of a loved one to keep cherished memories close by}

Happy Thanksgiving week!

Some Lovely Things

This week flew. I mean really flew. And so I keep finding myself in a state of shock that Turkey Day is next week! As the holidays approach ever faster I am missing my family (and the small-town way-of-life) more and more, but that also means I will be bursting with excitement when I finally get to see them for Christmas! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

So, here are a few of the [many] things brightening up my world lately.

{yep.}

{adorable overload}

{Paris in the rain}

{glittered mason jar...a must make}

{Scottish Highlands}

Brown Sugar & Bacon Smokies

Holy smokes these are good! We made them for a fun "let's stay in and cook" Sunday night, but they'd be great for a party or tailgate...or really anything or anytime that calls for some major yummyness.

1 pound bacon

1 pound little smokies (little weenies)

1 stick butter, melted

2 - 1 cups brown sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 375. 

2. Cut the bacon into thirds and wrap each third around a little smokie. Place all of the wrapped smokies in a single layer in a greased baking pan. 

3. Stir the first cup of brown sugar into the melted butter until mixed well. Pour the butter and brown sugar mixture on the wrapped smokies. Then take the other cup of brown sugar and sprinkle evenly over top. 

4. Bake your little sugared guys for about 15-20 minutes and then turn the heat up to 400 for about 10 minutes until the bacon becomes crispy.

5. Get ready to have your mind blown!

The Wrap

It seems the holidays cannot come soon enough...I'm so stinking excited about their arrival! I'm forcing myself to wait until after Thanksgiving to do any sort of Christmas gift shopping, but I tell you what...I am itching for some shopping (for others, I promise!). Until then, this sweet little thing will serve as a great reminder of the fabulous family I have waiting at home for me!

So here we go: an update on all things enjoyable from the past week or so.

{just one this week folks, because it's so awesome it gets to stand alone: a handmade pillow created and mailed to me by my super great little sis!}

Hot & Naked Pasta

Have you ever been to a restaurant (such as Spaghetti Works...yum!) that serves "hot and naked" pasta? If not, well know this: it's my favorite! Hot and naked is just that...hot and "naked" - meaning it is not doused in one of your typical pasta sauces. It's just pasta in a light concoction of Italiany nothingness. Aaannnnndddddd, it's cheap and easy-peasy to make! Here's how (you're welcome in advance ;}):

What you'll need:
- pasta (I'm partial to shells, but any shape will work)
- olive oil
- butter
- some spices you like (I'm a sucker for oregeno, so I combined that with pepper and garlic salt )
- parmesan cheese (optional)

Alright folks, let's make some pasta! That's what you do first: make pasta, like normal. Then, when your pasta is cooked to al dente perfection, just starting mixing it with your other ingredients. Add a pinch of this here and a dash of that there until you create the most amazing nothing sauce. And then eat. That's it! Super yummo pasta that's hot and naked and light yet filling and pretty much all-around fantastic. 

Stop...Glittertime

So I had this cute little navy box. It was the original packaging to a ring someone made for me. I loved this cute little box, and had recently been using it to hold my bobbi pins and hair rubberbands. But apparently I loved the box a little too much, because the hinge broke. I was pretty flustered, and have since spent weeks trying to think of an adequate replacement. 

And I finally found one! I cannot tell you how excited and relieved I am! 

I've been using these precious little candles from Bath & Body Works (you can see the scents I like here), and was finally starting to use up one. But what was I to do with the little jar when I was done? It was much too cute to throw away. And then a thought hit me...I'll use it for my homeless bobbi pins! Woohoo! So I went to the craft store and bought some good ol' Elmers glue and some loose gold glitter. Then I got my glitter on. 

Pretty cute, huh? Next up: a glittered-up travel case for the bobbi's! :}

SUCCESS!

Folks. I have major news. Like huge. Remember awhile back when I posted about my hair dying woes (and tips)? Well let the good times roll - I finally have terrific tresses! Seriously - I am ecstatic. I don't even know the last time I was this excited about my hair. 

The reverse ombre:

Man, I just love it! And it was easy, too! I simply went out and bought [another] box of hair dye - this time in a warm medium brown. I put the dye on the bottom half of my hair only, focusing on saturing my hair less and less as I worked my way up from the ends. I could not be happier with it; it's subtle yet bold, light around the face like I prefer, but with the perfect amount of warmth and richness I had been longing for. Go me! :}

The Wrap

An update on all things enjoyable from the past week or so.

{Christmas is coming! and that means lots of twinkly lights!}

{people watching + fall sunshine + window shopping + a magazine = one splendid afternoon}

{a chocolate chip bagel I cannot wait to try}

{light pink nails with some gold glitter}

{really into wine lately...and this one was super yummy}

Some Lovely Things

Here are a few of the [many] things brightening up my world lately.

{yes please!}

{positively precious}

{Vermont}

{salute to my Mom, plus it's outrageously cute}

{amazing combination of white and cozy}

Holiday Garland

Happy fall! :) 

I whipped up this little holiday-ish garland the other day...pretty cute, huh? And it was cheap and easy too! 

Where did I get that cute striped paper you ask? Lowes. For free. Just waltz in there and grab yourself some paint chips. Then start drawing and cutting. Be sure to have a candle lit. And tea. They'll help.

To assemble, I lined up my little cutouts upside down and taped them together. There might be a better way to do this. But it made sense in my head, so I did it. And it worked, so it's okay.

Then I took a piece of ribbon, placed it across the taped together little thingies, and taped it down. 

And there you have it! I only made one fall garland because I ran out of paint chips in the appropriate colors, but I have another one planned for winter!

The Wrap

STILL in full-blown fall mode. I'm somehow even more excited for the holidays than I was at this time last week, and thus am eagerly awaiting November! Plus, I'm not a huge fan of Halloween. So the sooner November comes, the better! This week will be a busy one, but I am excited to watch it go by quickly. :) So here: October's last update on all things enjoyable from the past week or so.

{yay for weather finally cool enough to wear jeans!}

{the cutest and coziest slippers}

{great advice, especially for those periods in life when everything is changing...or when you are hoping everything will change soon!}

{the BEST album...perfect for every single mood I find myself in and it's somehow very fall-ish}

{good for my tummy when I eat too many fall treats ;)}