Deck the Halls

When we moved to Indiana we left all our Christmas decorations in Utah.  

This year I was so excited to come up with completely new Christmas tree decorations.

Our tree at home is very rustic and outdoorsy.  I wanted something very different.  I love the color blue and it looks so pretty with almost every other color.  Since our carpet in our house we rent is blue I thought it would be a great year to give it a try.  I want the tree to have lots of vintage charm. 

 I loved how it turned out.  

We crafted most of the ornaments ourselves so it will always have fun memories. 

The ones we make didn't cost $1.00 or less. 

The glitter balls are super easy and fun to make.  I learned how to make them at a Relief Society activity.
Zoey and I ended up making about 24 of them.
You fill clear glass balls with a special floor polish, add glitter, shake and you are done. They turned out gorgeous!

My mom got this snowman idea from a friend.
Sherry sent me the wood cut out.

Painted and glittered birdhouses remind me of retro
glitter cardboard house my grandma betty always
displays.

Zoey setting up our favorite Fisher Price Little People Nativity.

I love these giant suckers I found at Crackle Barrel.

Silver Bells from the dollar store of fun for the kids to ring.

Walmart had these glitter churches for $1.00

Our ward had a cookie exchange night. I was on the commity
and was asked to be decorate the cookie table.
I was so glad I had the decorations I had been making.
I also used Christmas cookie cutters, rolling pins, spoons, etc.

I made five dozen gingerbread boys to share. It was a really
fun night. Everyone got to take home a plate of all different
Christmas cookies. Yum!

Giving Thanks

Our little family has so many things to be thankful for. 

 Our hearts have been full this November as we give thanks.  Life seems like a roller coaster a lot of the time. We have good and bad days.  Happy and sad days. We realize however,  we are so blessed.

I made this cornucopia for the kids out of felt.  The tutorial can be found at Family Fun
It was really easy and fun to make. A great quiet toy for church and helps little kids learn their colors and veggies.

Grandma Sherry came to visit us the first part of November.  We had lots of fun with her!

The kids love Grandma Sherry!

Thanksgiving morning I found Zealand trying to clean up the mess he made. 

 I am "thankful" he has almost gotten over this habit, and at least tries to clean up after himself.

The look of GUILT! 

We had a nice quiet Thanksgiving with the four of us.  

I was happy to find a nice cloth table cloth on clearance for $3.00. 

I am thankful for Zoey! She is such a big helper.  She made the name cards and pilgrim favors.

The best part of Thanksgiving! Homemade Pumpkin Pie!

We were also Thankful for the nice cards we got in the mail from our family in Utah.

Although, we had a nice time together, 

you could just feel something missing, our loved ones in Utah.

We had so much yummy food! It was great to have Ty around to help!

 I have to say all the training has paid off he. 

He knows just what to do to make a great thanksgiving dinner

He help fix a lot of the food, and even made the deviled eggs.

It was my sincere wish that Zealand "our picky eater" would at least try some of the yummy food. 

 In this photo he appears as if he might be eating.

 Alas, a second later he grabbed a roll, and ran off saying "Happy Thanksgiving"

His pediatrician told us he is in the 100 percentile for height and 70 percentile for weight. 

She said don't worry about his eating too much because he is a healthy growing boy.  

We enjoyed left overs for a few days after.  I hate the day leftovers run out. 

Time to come up with new meals. :)

I am thankful for healthy strong kids. Zoey is still enjoying gymnastics and ballet.  In her gymnastics   class yesterday, I got to watch as she did perfect cartwheels!  She is growing into a beautiful talented little girl. Her gymnastic teacher, and kindergarten teacher told me recently what a thoughtful kind friend she is to ALL the kids.  

They said she knows just how to help the other kids without being busy or mean. 

She really is a little mother.

We have all been missing our sweet Annie.  

We have less than 5 months till we can be with her again in Utah!

Even though it has really been a sacrifice to leave her in Utah, we are thankful she is alive and well.  

She was such a sick puppy with unexplainable seizures.  

We really thought she wouldn't live to 4 months old. Thanks mom and dad for taking care of her, and for Grandma Sherry to dog sit occasionally! We really appreciate it!

We are grateful for a warm home, opportunity for education, good health, and for our happy eternal family.  We just couldn't ask for anything more. -Zara 

New items for sale at Etsy.com

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It is cold and rainy out!  It has been so nice to stay inside and do some sewing.  Heres a peek at what I have been making for my Etsy shop, Zoebugs!

Hi, I'm Jane. I am a mother, step-mother, journalist, writer. And I am a...

I have read her book, and think she is amazing! What a great message!

Fall Family Portraits

We were very lucky to have our "special photographer" fly 1500 miles for our family portrait session. :) (Thanks Dad!) 

Give Jon a call if you want family portraits in Utah. www.jonwilliamsphotographer.com