Let it snow...

It may have arrived a few days after Christmas but it's finally here... pretty, pretty snow.

Fun stuff to come in 2013...

Two of my favorite Christmas gifts mean lots of DIYing and cooking in 2013.

history in the holidays: decorating with family treasures...

For me, the most important part of the holidays is family. Admittedly, I am super sentimental. I save everything that I deem "meaningful." Cards, furniture, pillows, ticket subs, clothes... if it has a memory attached, I save it. So when it comes to the holidays, if I can decorate with things that have family meaning, I am all in.

One of my favorite memories of Christmas is my Grandma's Christmas Village. When we were little, every year we would drive to visit her in Cleveland and get in late at night. Even at that late hour, my sister and I would race to get into the house and start playing with the village. It was pretty elaborate. It had multiple levels, ice rinks, skiers, all kinds of shops and houses, fake snow... the works. So it was with great honor that I inherited the village -- well, parts of it. No one knows what happened to the houses but I got all the people.

Santa no longer has reindeer and the horse is missing a leg, but it makes me so happy to see this Village in our front room. It reminds me of that magical feeling you would get as a child during Christmas.

I added some new houses and trees, a blanket of snow, and I even gave the Village their own version of the Rockefeller Plaza Christmas tree. 

This year, my mom and dad found some old ornaments from my other grandma, and I jumped at the chance to decorate with them. 

The ornaments have a great patina to them that make the pearl and silver ornaments look like mercury glass. My mother-in-law gave me three faux mercury glass decorations this year for Christmas so I filled a vase with some of the ornaments to create a "vintage" vignette. 

Our tree is full of ornaments from our families and childhoods mixed with some new ones we've acquired since we've been together. 

I know that decorating with a theme is popular around the blogosphere but there is something about decorations that evoke fond memories that puts me in the holiday spirit. 

What are your holiday decorating traditions? 

the most wonderful time of the year...

I look forward to this day every year... the day the Kardashian Kristmas Kard komes out. 

Seriously, it is the most over-the-top, ridiculous display of ridiculousness and everyone is photoshopped within an inch of their life. And I can't get enough of it. 

Happy Holidays! 

prayers...

I was about to post another cheerful Christmas entry when I heard the news about the Connecticut school shooting. I can even begin to fathom what makes someone do this and what these families will be going through for the rest of their lives. I pray for the lost little ones, the ones who died trying to protect them, for those so lost in their illness or sadness that they see no other option than violence, and for all of us that we can come together to figure out a solution to this growing and senseless epidemic.

More mantel goodness...

I just linked up to the Christmas mantel link party on Ten June. Check it out at get inspired by some festive holiday decor.

Link up to the party here

Christmas mantel...

my love affair with mantels has been well-documented on this blog. So it's no surprise that I was chomping at the bit to decorate ours for Christmas. It is collection of some pieces I already owned, some new purchases from our Thanksgiving trip and a craft project.

I love a good mirror above a mantel, so I knew I wanted to incorporate that into the design this year. I thought I would hang a wreath in front of it but it made the whole look too busy. Simplicity was the name of the game. On a recent trip to Target, inspiration struck. I bought three $1 ornaments and some fishing line.

I tied the fishing line to each ornament individually. 

Then I tied all three ornaments together, being sure to stagger the heights of the ornaments. Fishing line stays put after you knot it, but just to be sure, I tied them together multiple times to make sure they were secure. Then I securely taped the line to the back of the mirror with packing tape.

I love the way the mirror makes it look like a bigger cluster from certain angles and how it adds just the right amount of sparkle. Plus the fishing line gives the illusion they are floating in mid-air. 

I paired it with a topiary that I plan on using all year round and a candle and base from last year's decor. 

Now we just have to remember to turn on our fireplace at some pint and it will be a cozy first Christmas in our first home. 

Merry Christmas!! 

float like a butterfly....

This is what I feel like today. The hubs and I got Living Social deals for two weeks of boxing classes and took our first class last night. Today, I feel like a badass. 

Christmas decoration shopping...

during our visit to Iowa, my awesome mother-in-law took me shopping at some local shops for Christmas decorations. My husband's hometown has so many cute antique shops and home decor boutiques. I wish we had that many in our town. There is also an apple orchard that has a home store on the property and was full of great finds. It was two days of shopping and I loved every minute of it!

Some of the goodies I got include:

Cool coasters made of wood circles. 

Wool snowflake pillow that has an envelope closure on the other side. 

Reclaimed metal Christmas tree.

We had such a great time shopping and it was fantastic to get to spend such quality time with my mother-in-law. I wish we lived closer so we could spend more time together. I'm excited to share all of my finds with you and unveil our Christmas decorations.