Christmas is over? Already?

Oh goodness, it feels good to be back here! I hope you all were blessed with family and friend-filled days and lots of gifts and yummy food! This was one of the best Christmases I remember having in a while. This holiday season was devoted strictly to my wonderful family, and it was absolutely perfect!

Remember the storm that came my way a week ago? Well, that storm took out my parents power which didn't come back on until today. At first we were all whining about the power going out and what were we going to do, and me not being able to make it home, blah blah blah. Then my momma said the most beautiful thing. "Maybe this is God's way of slowing us down and reminding us what Christmas is really about..."

Mom, you're exactly right.

So, the power outage turned out to be a blessing in disguise and allowed my family to spend more time together during Christmas. It was wonderful!

It's been a habit for me lately to just post a bunch of stuff at one time. Well, that's what I'm doing again. I'm giving you a complete recap of BeB's Christmas extravaganza! Are you excited? Me too!

 Ok, first the outfits.

This is what I wore for Christmas Eve dinner with my family:

I had been saving these pieces for...well, I don't know what I was saving them for! And it hadn't occurred to me to put them together. The top is a Kristin Davis for Belk and the sweater is a Belk brand too. I wore it with black pants and my zebra flats.

And then on Christmas day we went to my parents' best friends' house. This is what I wore:

The dress is from Belk (I love Belk!). I got the tights in my stocking :) And the necklace is Forever 21 (also in my stocking). The flats are Isaac Mizrahi for Target.

This was me on Christmas morning. One with stocking (thanks, Dad) and one without.

Now, onto the loot- my favorite part! This isn't everything that I got, I just chose a few things to share with you all that I thought you would enjoy...just a little eye candy!

 I got a digital picture frame. Thanks mom and dad!

Two new Willow Tree figurines. Aren't these beautiful?

The mother and daughter is from my momma, and the puppy is from dad.

I got some new clothes from Forever 21.

 

 Aren't these so fabulous! I die!

I also got some new shoes. The first three were on sale at TJ Maxx (mom did gooood) and the gold ones are from F21.

The jewelry....

And this last one needs no intro....

Dad got a big 'ol hug for this!

I also got a diamond and white gold key necklace. I couldn't get a good picture of it though, dang. And few other things but I won't bore you with that.

The next few pictures are some randoms from our Christmas festivities!

 

 

 

Millie's loot, including a new coat and a Jackie O. sweater complete with pearl buttons :)

We got my cousin a Polo sweater dress. So loved it, to say the least!

Hope you all enjoyed my Christmas recap! So, how was your Christmas? What did you get? New Dior perfume?? New jewelry? I hope so!

So, what's on tap for this week? Well, I have a couple new things that I got for my bedroom that I want to share. And I did a little face-lift in my laundry room that I can't wait for you all to see! And I'm hoping to have another guest post this week! Woo hoo! I'm excited just talking about it!

Finally, I want to say hello to my new followers! Thank you for joining me :)

Ok, lovies, I'm going to eat dinner and then catch up on your lives!

Love to you pretties!

Christmas 2010

We have had a FABULOUS Christmas season in Minnesota! We certainly had a white Christmas; we are actually living in a winter wonderland (as are many of you!) and the house is dressed up to match.

Mother has been busy working on the house since returning from India. It looked great before, but it looks even more fabulous now and the work has only just begun!

These Santa gourds were purchased in Panama and are painted by a dear friend and missionary(their home, the dining room, will be one of the last rooms to be redone).

Paper whites a plenty and churches picked up in Central America can be found throughout the first floor.

"Hark the herald angles sing!"

"Glory to the new born king!"

Then there were the people to match the decor.

Everyone got wonderful gifts (nothing is hung on the living room walls yet either, so excuse the somewhat bare look)...

...even our furry friends!

I hope you are enjoying this delightful season and that you are staying dry and warm no matter where you may be!

Guest Post for Lambchop Designs

Dear Adrianne of Lambchop Designs asked me to write a guest post while she was out on maternity leave.  She is still on break enjoying adorable baby Anna and big brother Davis.  It has been nearly impossible for me to resist the urge to fly up to Virginia and snuggle them both for a long weekend. The blizzard of 2010 (oh, and the impending arrival of Bebe Haynes!) would likely prevent this trip from occurring any time soon, though. 

Anyhoo, Adrianne's lifestyle blog accompanies her painting business which produces "Fun Art for Cool Kids."  Naturally, much of her blog content addresses fun activities, party ideas and decor for kiddies.  Right before Anna arrived, Lambchop's posts were dedicated to nursery decorating, with Adrianne providing tons of ideas for painting and decorating the sweet one's new space. 

Adrianne wrote a thought provoking post about "going dark" from all technology prior to Anna's birth.  She avoided email, phone, texting, TV, etc. for an entire week!  I was intrigued, jealous, scared, amazed, and have committed to doing the "going dark experiment" at some point soon.  However, if you are simply unable to "go dark" from technology for whatever reason, whether it be professional (check!), personal (check!) or just sheer lack of willpower (double check!), there are some other ways you can go dark in your own life. Since pre-maternity leave Lambchop was focusing lots on nursery decorating, I decided to talk about how you, too, can also go dark in nursery decorating for yourself, a friend, or family member. 
First, let me start by saying it was virtually impossible find more than about ten examples of dark and bold nurseries (done well). That being said, I think we will start to see more of this decorating trend as it is incredibly sophisticated, chic and unique. What a refreshing change in nursery decor...not a "character" (Disney or otherwise) in sight!

Jenna Lyons' nursery, hopefully starting a longstanding trend. Although black walls in a nursery may initially seem counterintuitive, look how cozy it is! A little cave for your cub.

This nursery from decorpad uses textural woods to provide its sense of dark warmth. Kind of a modern rustic effect that is still appealing for a kiddie.

Check out the deep choco brown in this greeeeeat nursery from apartmenttherapy. Design tip: Utilize dark paint to make small spaces appear bigger (I know, not your mama's decorating tip of the 80s!). Love that sputnik light too.

Navy and yellow from designsponge. An unusual, but delightfully kid friendly combo. Dark paint does not always mean a mature space.

I had to include the eponymous Lee Kleinhelter nursery, even though everyone has seen it. The reason being that I have been so focused on its beautiful grasscloth, I kind of didn't notice the black or navy window treatments. Dark and bold statement....and functional blacking out for baby's sleep.

Okay, I had to save the best for last. I simply adore this nursery nook from Little Papercuts' blog and think that the black wall with black dresser was a bold and genius move. I am sure that when the decorator told her friends that the nursery walls were going to be painted black, the naysayers balked! No risk, no reward, though.  Check out all the shots here and swoon.

I included this shot from decor pad because, although not "dark," per se, the use of red is brilliant and unusual. Also, I have a soft spot for the hanging basket chairs...and think that the one painted white is presh.

I sincerely hope this guest post encourages you to think outside of the box when considering a palette for a nursery space. Ignore the message boards that say that dark nurseries are "depressing and understimulating" for babies (yes, I actually saw that online somewhere!) and go for something bold and dark when creating a spot for your chicken.

Thanks so much, Adrianne, for entrusting me to write for your blog for a day!  I am excited to see this post in lights on your blog when you come back from maternity leave. 

Cheers,

JSH
P.S.  Was Santa good to everyone?  He spoiled me too much this year.  I am a very lucky girl. 

Life is Short: Eat Dessert First (another yummy recipe!)

Thank you all for the wonderful response to my 'Pretzel Popper' recipe! I hope you all will try it, those things are so yummy! Mmmmmmm.

Since there was so much lovin' from you all, I decided to share another very simple dessert recipe. This one, however, is more like an appetizer. A sweet, little, slice of heaven appetizer! It would be perfect for a New Year's party!

I give full credit of this recipe to Ms. HFG who writes Monograms and Manicures. When she posted this I almost died it looked so yummy! So, here is my version with a little tweaking:

Chocolate Chip Ball

What you need:

One 8 oz. package cream cheese (softened)

1 stick of butter (softened)

I know it sounds fattening, so far! Well, it probably is, but you aren't gonna eat the whole thing by yourself....right? Well, even if you do I won't judge ;)

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons brown sugar

3/4 cup confectioners sugar

3/4 cup chocolate chips

Chocolate, Chocolate Chip or Regular Graham Crackers for dipping

Mix it up:

Combine cream cheese, butter, and vanilla until creamy.

Add in sugars and mix.

Stir in chocolate chips.

Put in fridge until it is a good consistency to form a ball.

(this is very important otherwise you're going to have a dip not a ball)

Form mixture into a ball and put on a platter.

Sprinkle with a few chocolate chips, it makes a pretty presentation!

Place crackers around the plate.

Voila! 

How yummy does that look? Well, let me tell you from experience it is deeeelish, and it was a big hit at Christmas Eve dinner with my family :) I hope you will try it for your next party or just because!

Ok, y'all I'm off to get ready for some post-Christmas sales! Woo hoo!!

Have a wonderful Saturday!

Happy Christmas!

I want to wish all of you a wonderful, happy, healthy, festive evening with your family and friends! And I'm hoping you unwrap all the little gadgets and trinkets and sparkles that you asked for tomorrow morning!

Happy Christmas, lovies!

And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth

Luke 1:14

Merry Christmas

MERRY CHRISTMAS to one and all!!!