thanksliving

I promise you this post will consist of decor for Thanksgiving.

I also promise that I will put heartfelt, reflective, and sincere thoughts in this post.

I hope you enjoy, particularly the latter.

Do you have your Christmas decor up yet?  A tree, maybe?  Or perhaps you have capitalized on the last bit of Fall weather and put your Christmas lights on your roof?  I don't blame you, or shame you.  The planner in me has tried to convince myself that it would be okay to start decorating a little early.  "The holidays are already so busy"  "It doesn't hurt to get started now"  "Christmas will be here before you know it".  I have tried very hard to hush this voice.  This is the voice that will talk so loudly it will drown out my grateful heart.

So I told you that I love Halloween.  And this is true, I really do.  But Thanksgiving is also one of my favorite holidays.  Do you know why?  It is not because of the turkey, or any other food I eat too much of.  It is because no matter how old you are, what religion you believe in (or don't believe in), what political party you support, or what color your skin is... we all have something we can be thankful for. 

I'm going to get a bit religious for a minute, if that offends you, skip on ahead :)

One of the most powerful quotes I have ever heard was:

"What if you woke up today with only the things you thanked God for yesterday"

There are a whole lot of days I would wake up with a bunch of nothing.  And you know what, it is because I do not always take the time to STOP and think about what I am truly thankful for.

Some women at my office started a weekly bible study a few years ago.  I make an effort to attend each week, but my schedule does not always permit.  This week I was able to attend and I am so happy because we talked about Thanksgiving - thanksliving.  The idea that we should live our lives, each day, with a grateful and thankful heart.  Thanksgiving comes around once a year, but we enjoy blessings each and every day.  This is why I love this holiday, because it is a nice reminder of the way we should live our lives year round.

So please, even if for just a fleeting moment, stop all the noise and think about the things you are grateful for.  Enjoy your time with family and friends, no matter how stressful it may be.  Take pleasure in sharing a meal together, even if you hate the way so-and-so makes (insert traditional side dish here).  Laugh.  Play games.  Look at old photos.  Put down your cell phone.  Be thankful.


Alright, I promised you photos... 

I don't put out nearly as much decor for Thanksgiving as I do for Christmas and Halloween.  It is a kind of a nice break between the two, lightens everything up a little bit before the house is full of Christmas-time-galore.

The main theme with my Thanksgiving decor is fall-type things (pumpkins, owls, etc.) and texture.  I feel like Christmas is consumed with glitter and twinkling lights and shiny things.  I really wanted to bring in some different textures before the glitter-takeover.

And of course, my fall wreath has to make an appearance!

  

New this year...

And my set of wood block pumpkins (available for purchase on my Etsy shop)

And finally, this cute little guy we found at the dollar store

What kinds of decor do you like to put out for Thanksgiving?  What are you thankful for?  Sound off in the comments below!

inspire: navy + pink

In case you haven't noticed, nautical is a big deal right now.  It is everywhere!  Nurseries, clothes, shoes, jewelry, living rooms.  You can hardly avoid it!

Well, I live in the good ol' Midwest, and the ocean is pretty far away.  We have a beautiful view of the muddy Mississippi (it is called that for a reason, by the way) and that's about it.  So, the full-on nautical thing isn't really my cup of tea, but I do like the navy paired with a punch of color, like pink.

Now, when I ventured out on the wide world of Pinterest to find some good stuff for this post, I was not prepared for what I found.  If you choose to do your own research, just know that I have spared you from some of the more, how should I put this, daring? saturated? blinding? versions of the navy + pink combination.

As usual, I like to stay on the more neutral side of the spectrum when it comes to color.  Here are some of my favorite photos:

All of these and many many more ideas can be found on my { home + decor } Pinterest board.

Head over to my Etsy shopping cart: navy + pink for some great finds!

etsy shopping cart: navy + pink

To supplement my post on navy + pink ideas, here are a few gems I found on Etsy!

shop: JuneCottage

shop: TRMdesign

shop: BeneathTheBarkAt825

shop: hydeandchicboutique

shop: CORAandPLUM

shop: LaviniasTeaParty

shop: LynettesArt

shop: ColoringTheirWorld

shop: LowCountryHome

shop: sarahhansenannapolis

halloween party 2014

If you haven't already caught on, my husband and I love Halloween.

Not kidding, the last two years we took off the day after Halloween (also known as November 1st) so we could go Halloween-clearance-shopping.

Before we even bought our house, we had already decided that we would throw an annual Halloween party.  This is our third year, and it keeps getting better and better!

After throwing parties, you start to figure some things out.  These are a few of the lessons we have learned:

• Most people will show up 30-60 minutes after the party "officially" starts
• There will be at least one person who shows up on time, or *gasp* early.  Be (mostly) prepared for guests to be at your house when the party "officially" starts (read: don't be in your bathrobe)
• When it comes to alcohol, most people will bring their own.  At first, we would buy tons of beer and such for the party (trying to be good hosts), and end up with more beer leftover than what we started with
• People will leave their leftover alcohol behind.  Be prepared to give it away to friends and neighbors if you won't consume it
• Guests like to have snacks, but unless they are there at meal-time, they will not want heavy food.  We usually stick with finger-foods and snack items that can stay out for a while and not have to be kept hot/cold

Check out some of the additional decorating we do and the snacks we put out!

Each year I try to do a little bit of a different spread.  Some things are repeats because they are requested by others.  New this year: chocolate covered pretzels that look like bones and a cheese ball that looks like a pumpkin!

Find a similar recipe here for this pumpkin cheese ball

I like this post here for a quick recipe to make these pretty convincing "bones" ;)

The first year we had the party I ventured out and made pudding shots, which I had only heard about on Pinterest but never made before.  They were phenomenal.  Everyone really enjoyed them.  So I make them every year now.  They are like little tiny ice cream cups of magical goodness.  There are plenty of recipe combinations online.  Here are a few of my favorites:

• orange creamsicle - vanilla pudding + orange vodka  (or orange pudding + vanilla vodka)
• thin mint - chocolate pudding + mint liqueur 
• root beer float - vanilla pudding + root beer vodka
• pumpkin pie - pumpkin pudding (if you can find it!) + whipped cream vodka

Hope you all had an awesome Halloween!!  What were your favorite decorations or snacks at the parties you attended?

inspire: white kitchen

My dream kitchen is white, with beautiful hardware and tiles that are a mix of glossy, iridescent and stone. My dream kitchen is also about three times the size of the one I have now...  and I think the ceilings would be much taller.  Check these beauties out!

ok so this isn't technically a kitchen, but I want one of these in a breakfast nook

those high ceilings! whoa!

the wood really warms up the space

All of these and more are pinned on my { home + decor } Pinterest page.

Happy dreaming!