Pin it Friday--Holiday edition

It's almost December and the holidays! More importantly... I have a house I can decorate!! Woo Hoo!!! Since moving to C-ville I have been dreaming of the day we get a house and I can decorate for the holidays. I am by no means Clark Griswold (via Christmas Vacation) or do I plan to make my place look like Santa and snowmen threw up on it... I love meaningful, family traditions--advent wreaths, turning off all the lights and sitting by the tree, a big wreath on the door, candles, and Christmas mugs full of hot chocolate. The smells of the holidays...fudge... I could go on and on. My mom is my inspiration for decorating-- she always made our the house the coziest most wonderful place during the holidays and I have wonderful memories of growing up there. Granted she probably ran herself ragged trying to do it all, but she never let it show. And since I am my mother's daughter after all, I hope that I can make Christmas as special for my son and family as she did for me.

So... how do I find inspiration for decorating my new huge house? Pinterest of course!!! Here are some of my favorites that I either do or are thinking of trying out. Enjoy.

                                                                              Source: make-it-do.com via Kate on Pinterest

My first pin comes from Make-it-do.com. It is one of my most repinned pins. At my house during the holidays it always smelled wonderful -- something was baking, the smell of the Christmas tree, a fire in the fireplace -- I loved it. So I tried this pin out last year to see if I could make our tiny place (we were in a tiny apartment) smell more homey, more like Christmas and it worked. This stuff is amazing. Try it. I know you will like it.

                                                                                                  Source: kimmccrary.blogspot.com via Kate on Pinterest

My next Pin is about changing up the way do our advent calendar/countdown to Christmas. For so many years we had the advent calendars where you opened up the little window for the day and got a piece of chocolate. Now anyone who knows me, knows that I am all for chocolate, but do I really want my son to associate counting down to Christ's birth with chocolate? I want him to experience the season. So that is why I am trying this idea for kimmccrary.blogspot.com. Using activities to celebrate each day till Christmas. I hope this goes well and it can become a holiday tradition at my house.

                                                                                   Source: tinycookers.com via Kate on Pinterest

This last idea is from tinycookers.com. Cookie Cutter Pizzas! What a fun way to serve pizzas for Dunc. I'm thinking this would also make a fantastic holiday appetizer. Just cut the dough with any holiday cookie cutter and top with pizza sauce and your favorite toppings. this is going to be so much fun. I can have Dunc help make them too.

Hope you all find some inspiration! Happy Holidays. 

Pin It Friday!!

It's been awhile since I've done a Pin it Friday--so now I give you my inspiration for the weekend and some fun. Enjoy.

My first pin is actually from Pottery Barn Kids. Duncan loves cars and I've gathered the supplies to see if I can make a replica of this. I'll have to post the results once I'm done.

                                                                                            Source: potterybarnkids.com via Kate on Pinterest

My next pin comes from the Pioneer Woman. I love her tips, recipes, and humor. My goal? To make this yummy dish this weekend of beef and snow peas for dinner.

                                                                                        Source: thepioneerwoman.com via Kate on Pinterest

My last pin is where we are going this weekend. Can you guess? We're going to the Washington DC Zoo. I can't wait to see how lil' guy reacts to all the animals.

                                                                                                   Source: dakotazoo.org via Buffy on Pinterest

       

Have a great weekend all! :)

Pin It Friday!

Time for another Pin It Friday. This weeks inspiration, which I must admit, I dearly love is -- dessert! Here are some things that I am so ready to try, especially now that Spring Break is around the corner and I will have time to experiment in the kitchen.

My first pin is from http://vegetarianirvana.wordpress.com/ -- salted caramel lava cake. This just might be to die for. And if I can figure out a way to make this gluten free for my husband, I just might make it all the time.

                                                                                        Source: vegetarianirvana.wordpress.com via Kate on Pinterest

Staying on the salted caramel kick, here is another recipe that I have to try from sweetpolita.com. It is for a salted caramel chocolate layer cake. How yummy does this look?

                                                                                        Source: sweetapolita.com via Kate on Pinterest

My final pin comes from bluewillowblog.org. It is french toast blueberry sandwiches. These just look so yummy good that I will definitely be trying this out soon. I will get you the results post haste!

                                                                                 Source: bluewillowblog.com via Kate on Pinterest

Happy Friday everyone.

Pin It Friday--St. Patty's Edition

Since tomorrow is St. Patrick's Day, my pins are dedicated to all things Irish-- here are some of my favorites.  Enjoy.

My first  pin comes from www.sheknows.com --yummy shamrock shakes. I admit I am a sucker for these. I stalk the McD's here until they come out every March. Now with the recipe I can have one whenever the mood strikes me (and believe me it has). Although I will say that my shakes never come out this pretty.

                                                                                           Source: sheknows.com via Kate on Pinterest

My next pin is one of the better recipes I have found for traditional corn beef and cabbage. My husband loves corn beef, not so much cabbage and he will eat this.  It's from recipe.com. Now I can't wait for dinner Saturday!

                                                                                           Source: recipe.com via Kate on Pinterest

My final pin is a digital image of the the traditional Irish Blessing that is often passed around my friends when one of us has a special occasion in life happening. I got this version from 3.bp.blogspot.com.

                                                                                               Source: 3.bp.blogspot.com via Kate on Pinterest

Happy St. Patrick's Day! :)

Pin It Friday!

Time for another Pin It Friday! This weeks theme is for my home. I've been collecting and dreaming of a new house since we moved here to VA. Trying to sell our home in Colorado has been a real challenge, so we are currently in an apartment. And I will tell you, going from an 1500 Sq. ft. place to 937 sq. ft. has been a real killer. We have a storage unit crammed full of furniture and home items (like half of what was my living room, kitchen, and study)! So until then--a girl has to dream--and pin!

My first inspiration comes from Idea Interiors in Montreal. You can follow her blog here. I really like this idea for a wall gallery--very simplistic, modern, classic, and stylish. What do you think?

                                                                                          Source: ideainteriors.tumblr.com via Kate on Pinterest

My next pin is such a great idea. It comes from Young House Love. This is a terrific blog that has been featured nationally on many websites and magazines. I have no idea where this woman gets her creativity from, but I consider it a blessing!

                                                                                  Source: younghouselove.com via Kate on Pinterest

Finally I am in love with this idea from houzz.com. My style is somewhat eclectic, but I am drawn to things that are natural and comfy. I love real wood and simple clean lines. This is so right up my alley.

                                                                                                Source: houzz.com via Kate on Pinterest

So what are some your inspirations? I'd love you to comment and share with me! Until next time, Happy Friday!

Pin It Friday!

One of my favorite social media obsessions is pinterest. I love it...searching and finding what others have found that I too can find inspiration from. I felt it was time to share, so I am starting what hopefully will be a Friday tradition of sharing with all of you some of my favorite new found inspiration.

My first pin comes from www.makelearningfun.com. I want to thank my friend Dana for finding it. And since my child loves dinosaurs, this will be a great rainy day activity to try out.

                                                                                                  Source: makinglearningfun.com via Kate on Pinterest

Next up comes a pin from filtwizardry.com. Again, I have to give credit to yet another friend, Summer, for finding this inspiration. I will definitely be doing this with Duncan to help with reading and word recognition.

                                                                                                 Source: filthwizardry.com via Kate on Pinterest

My final Friday pin comes from www.meetthedubiens.com.  Talk about a great family blog. You really should check it out. Tons of inspiration to be found. Ummm....What is it? Home made bathtub paint made from shaving cream and food coloring. I will soon be blogging on this new bath time excitement in our house.

                                                                                                Source: meetthedubiens.com via Kate on Pinterest

If you want to get involved in your own Friday Pin it, you can start by heading to www.5minutesformoms.com and check out there great link up for Pinterest Pin Friday.  The blog is covered with great mommy ideas, blogs, sites, even stores to help all moms out.

Happy Friday all!