I’ve been MIA, but with good cause….

The holidays really put me behind for posting on the blog! Sorry guys, but I’m going to try to be better.

Since I’ve last posted we had Thanksgiving.

This year, was much of the same as previous. We had a relaxed time, but added a visit to one of my friends house before coming home to cook at our own. Tried to get some good pics since everyone looked nice, but here is what we ended up with:

That same weekend, we picked out our main (yes, I have WAY more than one) Christmas tree.

It was the day of our BIG rival college football game (USC vs. Clemson) so of course the kids were decked out in their CORRECT team outfits.

Of course, not all of their moments are perfect.

Sigh.

Next, we had

Hubby’s (big) family in town and at our house for Christmas. We had a great time! We/I took family pictures of everyone in front of my snowman (that I made from thrift store finds---OOO how I miss those posts).

This is MY family’s picture.

And My kiddos….

Then, we had our first Santa visit of this year.

I expected the opposite as far as kids, but here ya go:

However, she really like ‘Ho Ho’ this year so she went back for more!

HOPEFULLY, the next post will be a post showcasing my house decorated at Christmas.

We shall see. Such a busy time of year!

Thanks for stopping in!!!

Reid and crew

DIY-Glitter Pumpkin

I am joining Metamorphosis Monday and It's So Very Creative again this week.

You'd think I would have started on some Christmas projects and while I do have a few in mind, I still can't resist sprucing up an old fav!

I got this pumpkin last year, after the Season clearance. I drilled holes in it immediately (before packing it away).

I set it out this year and thought it just needed a little extra something.

(and notice some small Dollar Store pumpkins I was also painting white at the time)

So, I did Modge Podge all over it and covered it in orange glitter.

Looks much better, I think.

In it's resting place, for now.

Thanks for stopping in!

I promise I will have some Christmas projects soon!

Reid

Tablescape Thursday-Thanksgiving style

I am joining Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for her Tablescape Thursday party.

I pulled out my grandmother’s original Fiestaware for this tablescape. I love the colors and they just scream Thanksgiving to me.

I remember as a kid, everyone would ‘fight’ over the dark blue plate. Here, you’ll see I placed it at the head of the table where my hubby sits. Nice wifey huh?

I especially love the golden boa I used down the middle of the table (a recent find on clearance at Hobby Lobby).

At candlelight……(no, it’s not dark outside yet…ha)

AND, I noticed I took pictures before I set my silverware out. Call it Mommy brain!

Once more look at my tablescape.

Thanks for stopping in!

Reid

Met Monday- Costumes

I am joining Susan's Metamorphosis Monday party at Between Naps on the Porch.

Yes, I am including a Halloween post. Sue me.

But, I waited yes, a little late to post a Halloween post until after Halloween because their costumes were semi-surprises, at least to the grandparents.

But, here is what I started with.

I bought some clearance brown fabric, Styrofoam balls and cone, ordered the blue 'bloomers' from Ebay, a hat from Good will, and bought some orange pants, a green shirt, and some black felt and went to town.

I'd say my total cost was $15 for all.

I cut one of the balls in half and used it at the tip of this 'cone' to make the club.

My big 'score' was when I found this hat at Good Will for .70! I hadn't thought about what or how to make an orange hat but knew this would work well.

And here is the final project. I cut the arms out of Pebbles' green shirt, cut the legs out of Bam Bam's pants, cut a 'sash' out of some of the brown 'fur' fabric, painted the hat orange and cut around the rim to make it look like a baseball cap. Then, I took apart the skeleton to use the bones for accessories, black felt triangles and glued them on the outfits. I also wrapped the 'club' in brown fabric and secured it with spray adhesive.

Please meet Pebbles and Bam Bam, 2009!

(yes, I spray painted her hair 'red' (it turned out more hot pink) and put a bone in it. No, Daddy wasn't crazy about it, especially since it's still kinda pink.ha! but it made their outfits, I think)

They won 1st prize in the costume contest we entered them in! YAY

Thanks for stopping in!

Reid

Flower anyone??? Also a call to the lurkers

I am posting this randomly, I know, and not linking to any blogs. But, wanted to celebrate our wonderful Fall weather (although don't judge by today since it has been raining all day, although it is still only been 65ish today)and show you my Little Princess.
And, I'd also like to ask everyone who regularly reads, to leave a comment. That means the ones who may not officially 'follow' but those who lurk and maybe don't post. I'd love to hear from you, all of you!

Meet my angel.
She and I recently spent some time in the yard where I was actually able to snap a few shots of her before she started to protest and/or pull her hairbow out.

"Hey Mommy....I found a flower...... Want to see it?"

"Are you sure??????"

"Come on Mommmmmmmy........."

"Don't you want to SMELL it????"

And even later, she still has the flower..........

Thanks for stopping in!

Showing more winnings…..And Transformation Thursday

I'm joining The Shabby Chic Cottage's Transformation Thursday party. Go check out more ideas and inspirations here.

Today, I am showing you the transformation of my coffee table decor and showing you more of my winnings from Chester and Donkey.

You can see more here and here.

If you missed everything I won, you can see them here.

For years, YEARS, my coffee table looked like this:

Boring huh!? Recently, I decided it will be constantly changing, along with other venues around my house. Thanks Blogland!

Here is what it looks like now:

Notice the orange 'vase' that was part of my winnings. I love this table now.

And believe it or not, these things don't get bothered by little toddler hands.

Whew.

Thanks for stopping in!

Reid

Hand Sanitizer (bottle) redo for Transformation Thursday

I am joining Transformation Thursday over at The Shabby Chic Cottage.

My transformation is a hand sanitizer bottle. In my excitement to start the project, I took this picture after I had taken the label off.

All items shown below were only $1 and were from Target and Dollar Tree.

I just put some sheer pink ribbon at the top and bottom then embellished the bottle with the flowers and rhinestones. This bottle was made for a friend of mine who LOVES pink. I also made one for me and it was done in black and white but am not showing you that one b/c I scratched the bottle trying to get the label off. THEN, I found some Goo Gone in my cabinet. *sigh*

You could do this with any bottle, soap or hand sanitizer, but I really liked the shape of this bottle.

Thanks for stopping in....

Reid

Clock to Cloche and more of my winnings from Chester and Donkey

I'm joining Kimba's DIY day at A Soft Place To Land. Go check out some great ideas!

Today, I am sharing more of my winnings from Jennifer at Chester and Donkey.

I’ve told you about more of my winnings here.

I found the clock (and tray) at my local thrift store, His House and squealed when I saw it because I remember Jennifer's post about turning one into a cloche. I knew when I received her package, just what to do w/ the clock.

The tray you also saw here.

I took the clock part out and spray painted the bottom with Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint. I found the finial at a hardware store and it matched the paint perfectly so I glued it to the top. I placed the pumpkin from my winnings inside and tied a bow at the top. The ribbon came from the Dollar Tree and is sheer with pumpkins on it.

A close up of my new cloche.

Thanks for stopping in and please remember to go check out Kimba's for more great ideas!

Reid

Stolen....Blog Award.....

I stole this from my friend Kelly's blog.

Rules
1. You Can Only Use One Word.
2. Pass this along to 6 of your favorite bloggers.
3. Alert them that you have given them this award.
4. Have Fun!

The Fun Part:
1. Where is your cell phone? beside
2. Your hair? short
3. Your mother? helpful
4. Your father? nice
5. Your favorite food? Chinese
6. Your dream last night? none
7. Your favorite drink? shimmy Chardonnay :)
8. Your dream/goal? photographer
9. What room are you in? kitchen
10. Your hobby? thrifting
11. Your fear? HEIGHTS!
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Happy
13. Where were you last night? Home
14. Something that you aren’t? Patient
15. Muffins? Nah.
16. Wish list item? Kurieg
17. Where did you grow up? Lexington for the most part
18. Last thing you did? swallowed refer to #7-HA!
19. What are you wearing? jeans
20. Your TV? Overused
21. Your pets? cats
22. Friends? supportive
23. Your life? Hectic
24. Your mood? Relaxed
25. Missing someone? always
26. Vehicle? Tahoe
27. Something you’re not wearing? shoes
28. Your favorite store? Goodwill TJ Maxx
29. Your favorite color? red
30. When was the last time you laughed? Today
31. Last time you cried? last night
32. Your best friend? D
33. One place that I go to over and over? daycare
34. One person who emails me regularly? alot
35. Favorite place to eat? Chuck's :)

Here are the ones I have tagged:
Jennifer
Cheri
Sarah
Shauna
Karrie
Mary

Wordless Wednesday

The picture says it all…..

Happy Anniversary to my Husband!

On October 20, 2003 at 4:00 PM hubby and I were married.
It was a day I will never forget. The day I married my soul mate. The day I finally became happy and complete. And incase anyone is interested, here is the story of how it all happened.

We had a cruise planned long before we decided to get married.
The closer the vacation came, the more we were 'tossing' (half joking) the idea of getting married on the cruise, in the Bahamas. Then, we started to get serious and looked into getting married on the beach there. That got to be too complicated, so we decided that the beach in Charleston, SC was just fine. All we wanted was us, and our toes in the sand. Afterall, the cruise ship was leaving from that port anyway, so 'why not?' We hired Mobile Marriage, a photographer (Sorry forget who it was), and found a quaint spot on the beach for our special day.

Oh wait....did I mention we eloped!? We did!

We had secretly planned this special day without anyone else knowing (except another couple who happened to be going on the cruise with us).

We planned a 'reception' (aka party) for several weeks after we got back and were sending out invites to that before we left. And 'before' I mean RIGHT before. You see, we got married in front of the lighthouse on Sullivan's Island and several months before the cruise/wedding, we went to take pictures of the lighthouse (b/c we were going to print it on the invites). As we were leaving the beach, my wonderful husband got down on one knee and officially proposed, with a ring and all! (we had been saving money for the cruise and to buy a house so we had only planned on wedding bands)

So, we printed the invites, which turned out to be 'guess what we did!' announcements as well and stuck them in the mailbox before we boarded the ship. The front said 'On October 20th, 2003....' and the inside said 'We got married!' then went on to include the party details.

We imagine the phone lines were BURNING up about two days later. Sure enough, when we got back on land and turned on our cell phones, we had several messages.

Happy Anniversary to my wonderful husband, soul mate, and amazing father of my kids!

Thanks for letting us share,

The Anderson's

Est. 2003

It’s Fall, Ya’ll…..and DIY day!

I'm joining Kimba's DIY day at A Soft Place to Land. She is also doing a giveaway so please be sure to check out her site for the details as well as links to many more DIY projects.
Speaking of giveaways.....I recently won a giveaway from Jennifer at Chester and Donkey. It was my first win and I was SO excited to receive my package.

Incase you didn't see her giveaway post, this is what I won.

I am going to do a series of posts that will showcase these within my home.

I took some gold scrapbook paper and cut it to fit the frame (which was a beautiful green color...and perfect, but I just started 'splashing' green around my house).

Then, I took some faux leaves from the Dollar Tree (I love that place) and glued them onto the paper.

Then, I took that pumpkin and gourd....also from the Dollar Tree (bag of 6 at that!) and cut them in half, painted glue on them and sprinkled them with orange glitter.

Then, I glued them onto the leaves in a random pattern. Like the way it turned out?

I do! And here is it's new home on my Fall mantel.

Thanks again Jennifer!

Reid

Pink Week!!!

It’s Pink Week at I Heart Faces and I am pleased to join this week as October is Breast Cancer awareness month. A dear friend of mine battled Breast Cancer for many years and passed away March of last year. She continues to be my true inspiration and although she never met my son, she did get to meet and hold my daughter. Therefore, I thought I would share a photo of my daughter in Kathy’s honor.

Kathy—I miss you every single day! Love you!

And here is Gracie-girl today…..she misses you too!

Reid