Christmas with the Moore's

It's hard for me to believe the last time I sat down to blog was nearly a month ago.  Where does the time go?!  I'll tell you- wrapping, trees, get-togethers, baking, more wrapping, gifts and more baking.  That just about sums up what the Moore family has been up to.

With the troublesome news that hit very close to home, I've wanted to sit down and blog about the Sandy Hook tragedy.  Watching the news reports and the vigils on television had me sobbing at one point.  Whenever I tried to sit down and put my feeling into words, I struggled.  I think as a mom it hit me harder than it would have prior to having Lily.  As a parent I could barely watch as other parents mourned for their children.  With everything that has been said, I suppose I will leave it at that.  No need to talk about the issues now surrounding it, just remember the young lives that are now watching over us and if you are at all religious, please say a little prayer.

Back to the Moore family Christmas...

This was Lily's second Christmas, but last year she was only three months old.  This Christmas was definitely more exciting- watching her unwrap gifts and stare at the tree.  My DH and I kept saying "NEXT year, she will really get it."  And maybe by next year, she will have a little brother or sister to keep her company while she opens gifts. :) :)

Here are a few pictures from our holiday this year.  I hope to have more up shortly for all of my bloggy friends.

My mother-in-law's Christmas tablescape, Banana Oatmeal bread (1 of 5 loaves!),  New earrings from my lovely husband (sorry for the blur) and one of our beautiful ornaments (which has our wedding invitation curled inside!)

DIY Christmas Decorations: Elegance Without the Price Tag

For a couple of years now I have enjoyed decorating my own home for each season and holiday. However, decorations don’t always come cheap. So, instead of buying all of my decorations this year, I chose to put on my ‘creative cap’ and think of some ideas of how to spice up my home and give it that warm cozy feeling for the holidays without breaking my bank account!

Here are a few of the projects I did that will look spectacular in anyone’s home:

Centerpiece for the Dining Room Table

We all know the centerpiece of the dining room table will be looked at by all of our guests and who wouldn’t want that jaw dropping, stop in your tracks b-e-a-utiful piece? I DO! So I decided to keep is simple this year. Simple is elegant. Elegant is classy, and classy usually means money- but not this time! Here’s what you need:

·       A Clear plastic or glass vase,

·       ornaments (I like to use sparkly and shiny ornaments)

·       ribbon (to match the ornaments).

 All you do is fill the vase with the ornaments and glue the ribbon to the bottom of the vase about 2 inches from the bottom. I found that silver and gold ornaments with matching ribbon turns out the best and looks the most chic.

Candles

Spice up your end tables with a few candles. All you need is:

·       Various sized red candles (height and width is up to you)

·       Candy canes (unwrapped)

·       Hot Glue

·       Red Ribbon (optional)

These items can be bought at the dollar store costing less than $10 for this candle project. Start by breaking the candy canes into even sized pieces that will reach about ½ - ¾ of the way up the candle. You will need enough candy canes to go around each of the candles. Glue the candy canes vertically to the side of the candle until the candle is covered. The top portion of the candle should be the area left open. If you want to add a little something extra, tie a red ribbon around the candy canes.

*Candy Canes can also be glued to the sides or vases for decorating bouquets, like this one I found on Christy Stewart-Bright's  Pinterest! 

Flowers/ Plants

Instead of buying expensive potted plants that will only last a couple of weeks to a month, if you’re lucky, find fake plants and flowers and pot them yourself. This will allow you to reuse them year after year. You can also mix and match flowers each year to create a whole different look! Since I like the glitz and the glam, I chose to buy gold leaves to place in a glass vase and covered them with gold glitter. Plants and flowers bring that cozy, warm feeling into your home.  

By sticking to a simple color scheme through out the main rooms of your home, like red, gold and silver, or gold, black, green and white, you will maintain a sense of consistency and create a feeling of cohesiveness when guests are visiting. There are always great sales on décor after the holidays, so if you plan ahead for next season… you will be sure to get the best deal!