bring it!

January 2, 20127 Comments

That’s what I have to say to 2012!

2011 is gone.

Over.

Done with.

Good.

Bad.

Or, indifferent.

I am moving forward and focusing on 2012…you should, too!

We can’t change what happened in the past, but we have ALL the control to change our future.

So, first things first…CHANGE your THOUGHTS!

This is my quote to live by for the year…

I have always loved motivational quotes and positive affirmations. This year, one of my goals is to share some of my favorites with you.

Happy 2012!

home is…within myself.

{best of 2011} through the rearview

December 29, 20112 Comments

Now that we are nearly looking at all of 2011 through the rearview mirror here are the {best of 2011} on home is…what you make it!

{the following were some of the most viewed posts…I couldn’t pick out my favorites because there were so many}

I hope you had as much fun in 2011 as we did!

I think 2012 has some great adventures in store for us!

Stay tuned…

home is…reflection.

*linking up with…

merry christmas…and a winner

December 24, 20112 Comments

When I look at our bulletin board full of holiday cards from friends and family all I can do is smile.

We are so blessed.

Earlier this week the little guy asked me to record him on my iPhone.

He was saying a prayer before he ate a snack (like he does at preschool).

The last thing he said was, “…thank you for this wonderful life and our family.”

He’s got it right.

Merry Christmas to you all!

**********

And, congratulations to Jen for winning the giveaway!

Jen, I will contact you and get your prize to you ASAP!

**********

I will be taking a few days off to spend time at home with my family.

May your days be merry and bright…

home is…there’s no place like home for the holidays.

who likes pancakes for breakfast?

December 22, 20112 Comments

We do!

It’s what the kids wanted for breakfast this morning and three or four other times in the last week.

They also like them for dinner.

And, I don’t feel bad feeding them to the kids that many times a week.

Do you know why?

They are actually good for them!

Here’s the trick…

EQUAL PARTS: egg, oats, and cottage cheese

Yep, eggs, oats {I like to use the gluten free oats from Trader Joes}, and cottage cheese!

(2 large eggs are pretty much equal to 1/2 cup, so use 1/2 cup oats and 1/2 cup cottage cheese)

Add some cinnamon and vanilla (probably about 2 tsp vanilla and cinnamon to taste).

Blend it all together until smooth.

Cook them on a med heat in a skillet.

Serve with your favorite pancake toppings!

We like chocolate chips, strawberries and whipped cream, and good old maple syrup!

Wouldn’t pancakes be great for breakfast on Christmas morning?!

Remember to go leave a comment to enter my {december blog giveaway}!

home is…getting my kids to eat food that is good for them!

4 sleeps ’til christmas {december blog giveaway}

December 21, 20117 Comments

If you think that’s exciting, how about a giveaway?!

I meant to get one on here earlier in the month, but got overwhelmed with my own holiday decorating, playing, crafting, and gifting.

So, here we go…

And, as I promised, a happy elf…

To enter, please answer the following question(s) with a comment below:

What is a favorite Christmas/holiday tradition that you grew up with?

And, if you have kids, how are you sharing that tradition with them?

For (4) additional entries you can:

like home is what you make it on facebook
like colton+cadence on facebook
tweet about the giveaway with my link
subscribe to my blog via e-mail (up at the top left of this page)

{to be official, please mention each additional entry in a separate comment to count}

Deadline is Friday, December 23rd at 9pm Pacific.

Winner will be announced on Saturday, December 24th!

And, while the winner will not receive the package until after Christmas, there are goodies you can use year round, and others you can look forward to using next year!

{there may even be a couple of extra goodies in the package}

home is…giving joy to others.

the happy elves

December 20, 20115 Comments

One of the traditions I have at Christmas is to give everybody in our immediate and extended family an ornament.

Some years I buy different ones for each person.

Some years I buy similar ornaments and personalize them with their name and the year.

Some years I make them.

Some years the kids make them.

Some years I forget to give them.

This year I was inspired to give handmade ornaments.

I just finished the last ones up today.

This was my inspiration…

Source: memoriesoncloverlane.blogspot.com via Stephany on Pinterest

Although we have a backyard full of pinecones I opted to go a bit of a different route with my “merry and bright” color scheme.

In general, I used these instructions from Martha Stewart,which make these elves…

Source: marthastewart.com via Stephany on Pinterest

Instead of using pinecones I used plastic ball ornaments and instead of using wooden beads for the heads I used model magic clay.

I also changed the shape of the shoes.

I drew the faces on with Sharpies, but would love to find a different way to paint the faces. And, I used white model magic clay…in the future I would use something with more of a skin color tint to it.

Other than that I am more than pleased with how they turned out!

My elves can’t stand up on their own, but they hang on a tree just fine.

Each ornament is unique for each person in our family…all 21 of them!

Four elves are hanging in our tree, 12 elves are on their way to New York, and 5 elves are still working on getting packaged up to get sent to Colorado!

I took some photos of the 9 that are still here at our house last night…

taking a joy ride in one of our Christmas decorations…

and on the kids toys…

and just hanging out in the playroom…

and helping with the Christmas decor finishing touches!

Tomorrow, I will be posting a giveaway including one of these elves and some other holiday goodies.

home is…having a little holiday fun.

*linking up with…

tatertots and jello

{holiday home tour} bits and pieces

December 19, 201112 Comments

I am still working on some last minute decorating and then plan to get the house cleaned up and enjoy some time with the kiddos and Ryan once the weekend rolls around.

Here are some photos of our family room.

You will notice the trolls on the mantel and a project that I borrowed from Pinterest.

I am using the same fabric covered bulletin board to display our Christmas cards from family and friends as I did last year. Only this year I added a string of lights with ribbon tied on it as a frame {a Pinterest find}.