Best of Holy Craft 2015 a year in review
Vinyl sayings on burlap placemats
Merry Christmas
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a savior who is Christ the Lord. Luke 2:11
Merry Christmas from our family to yours!
Last minute crafty gift ideas
I know, I know, Christmas is in two days, but I couldn't help but squeeze in a few last minute gift ideas that you can make in case you have a few last minute presents to whip up.
I actually had all of these supplies on hand, so no special trip was required to a craft store. But I am a craft supply hoarder, so perhaps you are much more organized and less in need of craft supply intervention than I am.
Regardless, these gift ideas can all be whipped up in under an hour and most of them can be made in under twenty minutes.
Easy chalkboard art secret for those of us that aren't hand lettering artists
Snow and Christmas trees to make a fun holiday decoration
Last year, one of my favorite Christmas crafts that I made were these die cast cars with snow and mini Christmas trees. They were huge hits at my local craft bazaar last year, so I kept my eyes peeled this year as I did garage sale and thrift store shopping for more things that I could add faux snow and trees to.
I found a few things, and this time, they were even bigger than the little die-cast cars I used last year!
Vintage tablecloth turned into Christmas tree skirt
I love Christmas! I love decorating for Christmas and I love unpacking my Christmas boxes every single year. Every year I add to the boxes with handmade ornaments like I featured all last week in my six days of handmade. Sometimes, I add big items, sometimes I add small items.
This year, one of the new items I added to my Christmas decor was a new tree skirt. But not just any tree skirt. It's a tree skirt that I made out of a pretty amazing vintage round tablecloth that we got from my husband's grandmother's estate just after she passed away this summer.
I actually see round tablecloths like this at garage sales and estate sales quite often, so in case you are like me, you can pin this or tuck this away and remember when garage sale season starts back up again to keep your eyes peeled for a round tablecloth to make a no sew Christmas tree skirt.
It took me under 5 minutes and I promise, there is really no sewing to make this tablecloth into a Christmas tree skirt. Want to see how?
Must have, but often forgotten, items to have before you have guests this holiday season
I do my best to stay extra super efficient though so that I can get the must have's and to do's done on my list so that I can focus on the important stuff. The important stuff usually revolves around relationships and spending time with those that you love, which is why I made up a must have {but often forgotten} list of items to have on hand before your guests arrive.
World globe vintage map ornament
Handmade clay antler ornament
Deer and Christmas tree ornament
Welcome back to day four of six days of handmade ornaments. I hope you have enjoyed seeing all of the fun homemade ornaments so far. In case you missed it, check out the scrabble tile ornaments, typewriter keys and Christmas tree in a jar.
These were really easy and fun and the possibilities for them are endless! Let's get started!
Joann Fabric, I'm breaking up with you. An open letter to the craft store giant.
Joann's Fabric and Craft Store, I'm Breaking Up With You!
all I wanted was some Styrofoam balls for 40% off. Is that too much to ask???
What is it with the Joann Fabrics Coupons?
Christmas tree with Mica snow in a jar
Welcome back to day three of six days of handmade ornaments. I've been showing you easy and inexpensive ornaments that I have made this holiday season.
Today's ornament is more about show and tell, and less about full tutorial. Mostly because nearly everything for this ornament was bought at a garage sale. Though hopefully it will inspire you.
Handmade typewriter key ornament
Welcome to day two of six of Holy Craft's six days of handmade ornaments. Yesterday I shared with you the handmade Scrabble tile ornament. Today, I will be sharing with you a round typewriter key ornament.
There are so many ways to personalize these ornaments for your family and friends. I picked this 5 since there are five people in our family. They are super easy to create. Let me show you!
Six days of handmade ornaments. Scrabble tile ornaments on a vintage ruler
Welcome to day one of six days of handmade ornaments. I can have a boxes full of ornaments, and yet every year, I end up making a few more to hang on the tree. This whole week, I will be sharing with you easy and inexpensive ways to create your own handmade ornaments this year.
The first one I'm excited to show you is my scrabble tile ornaments mounted on a vintage yardstick and hung with plaid ribbon.
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Motherhood and transformation-How your life changes when you become a mom
I've gotten a bit sappy and sentimental this year. You see, my oldest son, the little boy who made me a mom, is entering into an exciting year.
He's a senior in high school and while it's barely December, he's applied at colleges and university's all over the country. Next year at this time, his zip code, heck probably even the state he lives in is going to be different than the one we share together right now. For the past 17 years, we've shared life in the same four walls. He's taught me how to be selfless and how to love unconditionally. He gave me the gift of motherhood and that role has changed me for the better.
I was one of the first of my friends to have a child. I remember talking to them about how life wouldn't really change. The only thing that would be different is that I would have a baby. No big deal. Holy cow, was I wrong! The moment that baby was placed in my arms, my world was totally different.
I was only 20 when my son was born and my life revolved mostly around me. My decisions were mostly driven by what I wanted to do and what I needed. As soon as that baby was placed in my arms, it was no longer about me. I didn't just become a mom that day, we became a family.
While you hear that your life will change when you become a mom, you don't always believe it. I think it's because change usually has a negative connotation. My life changed completely when I became a mom, but it changed for the better. I made sacrifices being a young mom, and while I know my 20's would have looked quite different had I held off parenthood as long as the majority of my friends did, I know that I would have missed out on learning so much about myself during that time.
As my son grew and started to ask questions, I learned more and more about myself and my values. I learned what was really important and what really wasn't. I learned to slow down, to laugh more and to be intentional. So new mom, yes, your life is going to change completely after you have a baby, but it doesn't mean that you stop being you. You actually start being a new better version of you. A version that has eyes watching you and ears listening to you and a child who mimics your every move and that version turns into the version of it's best self.
And now, 17 years later, as I prepare to send that young man that still calls me mommy out into this world, I know that I have grown into that role as mom. I embrace that role with pride and while part of my heart will leave this home and head out into the world, I have given my whole heart to be his mother. Plus also, Lord bless us, we still have two more kids at home to hug on and Lord Jesus, that is all that is holding this sappy mom together, because it's true what they say, the days are long but the years are short.
So I look to all you new moms, those moms with babes in their bellies and in their arms and crawling up their legs, those moms who haven't gone to the bathroom by themselves in years and those who haven't slept in weeks with a fond remembrance. Those days are long gone for me, but I remember them well.
Your life will change completely, but you will be completely better, and one day you will look back on those sleepless nights and those long {oh so very long!} wakeful days and you will remember the small hands that slipped into yours, the sticky kisses and the incessant questions from curious toddlers and you will realize that you have never loved so deeply in all of your days and you won't regret a second.
15 things to know before you get Invisalign {braces} as an adult
When I was a kid I was given the choice to get braces or not. My dentist didn't think that I really needed them and my parents were OK with letting me make the choice if I wanted them or not.
I did not.
I was happy that I missed out on that rite of passage as a kid, but the older I got {I'm blaming it on late erupting wisdom teeth}, the more my teeth started to bother me. I had this tooth in the front that seemed to keep moving and shifting further and further over and my bottom teeth were getting quite crowded.
I was starting to spend more and more time in the orthodontists office as my three kids started treatment, and I flippantly mentioned it to my husband one afternoon that I was considering getting braces. I was only really going to consider it if I qualified for Invisalign {clear aligners that you wear over your teeth instead of traditional metal brackets}.
When I was making an appointment for one of my kids consults, I asked if I could be seen for a consult as well. Our insurance paid for a quarter of the treatment, we had money in our HSA account and I got a {small} family discount from the orthodontist since we would have three members of our family in treatment at once. I signed up and got started in March.
I've worn Invisalign for almost 9 months now and am at least half way done with treatment and I have learned a few things that I wish I had known before or in the beginning. If you are considering adult braces, here are a 15 things you should know.
Why I would rather have a fake Christmas tree
Why I would rather have a fake Christmas tree
For the first 25 years of my life I had a real Christmas tree.
My uncle owned a Christmas tree farm in Brown County, Indiana.
My family and I would load up in the station wagon on a Saturday morning, drive an hour, pick out the perfect trees {yes, there were usually two} from the lot, tie the trees to the top of the station wagon and drive home. But only after stopping at White Castle {every time} for sliders and onion rings.
When we got home, my dad would carefully set to work sawing off the bottom of the trunk outside, before even attempting to bring in two twelve foot tall Christmas trees.
Bringing the trees into the house was a whole 'nother job!
No matter how tightly wrapped the tree was, there was usually always some ramming to get it through the front door. Once inside, the task of getting the tree into the base took what felt like hours to a kid anxious to get started decorating with all of my favorite ornaments.
My parents usually had us kids setting up the fake kids tree that my dad had from his bachelor days. This would usually keep us busy enough for my dad to get one of the trees inside and into the stand.
Christmas tree count: three. One of the trees was our family tree, another was my mom's pretty tree, and the third was our kids "fake" tree.
After a snooping mishap when I was about seven, the very large tree in our front bay window {did I mention that it was twelve feet tall?} had to then be tethered to the wall in several different places to prevent an early morning crash.
Once the tree was in it's stand, then the real work would begin.
The stringing on of the lights.
This may just be my childhood memory getting the best of me, but if the tree was twelve feet tall, it was at least eight feet wide at it's widest part.
There were boxes and boxes of lights.
My parents really liked lots of lights on the tree, so this task usually took hours.
I remember all of us kids scrambling to put on ornaments before the lights were even on the tree!
There was a whole lot of waiting.
Fast forward several years to our first and second Christmas.
We were living just off campus at Purdue and bought a tree from the forestry department for $15. My husband and I were newly married and I don't remember us having a whole lot of decorations for the tree.
My mom and best friend Audrey, drove up to our small apartment and we made those cinnamon roll out ornaments. They were beautiful!
Once our second Christmas rolled around we had a newly walking toddler on our hands.
The live tree selection in the Midwest is usually slim pickings to our selection here in the Pacific Northwest.
I don't know what kind of tree we got, but it was so darn pokey and sharp, that my husband had to wear gloves just to put the lights on the tree!
Our sweet toddling boy was so enthralled by the glimmering lights on the tree that he waddled right up to it and touched it. Only to back away screaming! Guess that's one way to keep a toddler away from your Christmas tree, pick out one that has barbed wire needles!
Speaking of toddlers, we were usually so busy making sure those small mouths got fed, that there would inevitably be a few day stretch where the tree would go dead because we forgot to water it. Usually that stretch happened right after we put the tree up. Pine needles would litter the floor all around the tree and it would be a constant job just to make sure they were vacuumed up every day. Not to mention it was probably a fire hazard!
I can't remember if it was when I was pregnant with my second child or pregnant with my third {it's all a blur!}, but I found a nine foot tall fake pre-lit tree after Christmas on super sale for $28. A deal I couldn't pass up! Mike was a hard sell at first {we both grew up with real Christmas trees} but after setting up the tree the first year, he was sold! We haven't looked back since...and yes, we still use the $28 tree. We've even added a white tree {garage sale special for $5} in our upstairs hallway, and I set up a small $3 tree in my egg crate in my front entry.
Christmas tree count: three...just like when I was a kid.
When I was a kid, getting a real Christmas tree was a weekend long ordeal filled with waiting and anticipation. As I got older, getting a real Christmas tree was messy and a lot of work.
I don't miss the hunt for the perfect real Christmas tree every year. I know where it is.
It's in my garage. Safely stored in a large box ready to be brought out and decorated in under two hours!
Fake trees don't need to be watered, which is a good thing, because man, we were really bad at remembering that! There are no messy needles on the floor, no marks on the door jam from shoving the tree inside, no hours wasted driving, barely anytime for set up and it takes no time at all to put the lights on.
Instant gratification.
I like that better than the fresh pine smell.
So what about you, do you love a real tree or are you sold on having a fake tree?
Three things you need to know about identity theft, and how to prevent it from happening to you
Three things you need to know about identity theft, and how to prevent it from happening to you
Several months ago, my husband was the victim of identity
theft. Using his personal information,
someone was able to apply for {and receive} loans, credit cards, and cell
phones, among other items. He has spent
dozens of frustrating hours over the last few months trying to close the
accounts, restore his credit, and prevent this from happening again.
With the slew of well-publicized security breaches happening
lately, affecting tens of millions of people, it is likely only a matter of time
before this happens to you or someone you know.
My husband has offered to write a post to share with my readers about what he
learned from this unfortunate situation, and how you can prevent it from
happening to you. Please read his story,
and use the included links to help educate and protect yourself from identity
theft.
Comparing Two Catalogs
This time of year I get a ton of catalogs. Well, not really a ton because to be honest I rarely buy anything from them so I usually get taken off lists rather quickly, but I do get some catalogs. I picked up a few of them and started flipping through while I was eating breakfast one morning.
These are the two I picked up. The World Vision gift catalog and the American Girl catalog. I must say, that was an interesting start to the morning that really got me thinking about a few things.
Let me start with the American Girl catalog. I have a 13 year old daughter who has a few American Girl dolls thanks to garage sales. I have never purchased anything from the actual American Girl store other than lunch one afternoon a few years ago when my mom and I took my daughter on a girls day and enjoyed a little after Christmas shopping. My daughter realized that the $50 gift card that she had received for Christmas could purchase her barely one outfit for her 18" doll.
Don't get me wrong. I love American Girl. I remember wanting one when they came out when I was a kid and I picked one up as quickly as I could when I found one for $5 at a garage sale. I tucked that garage sale find away one year and it appeared under the Christmas tree for my daughter. I love that the American Girl dolls encourage girls to be girls and provide an opportunity for them to maintain their childhood in the most wholesome way.
However, I don't love their price tag and like I said, I've been lucky enough to score a fair amount of American Girl dolls and their accessories used and at a fraction of the price over the years. While we could afford to buy American Girl doll at retail prices {the average doll will set you back around $120}, we have chosen not to because we would rather use that money so that we can be more generous in other areas of our life. More on that later.
While perusing the American Girl catalog, the last page has the American Girl promise which says:
We promise to never stop believing in the unlimited potential in all girls. We're dedicated to creating products, services and experiences that help boost confidence, ignite creativity, and fuel connections. It's our job to remind the world--and girls--how strong, brilliant, and brave they can be.
I couldn't agree more! Especially with that last line. Let's take a second to break down that promise and see how it is that American Girl is fulfilling that promise with their products.
You can purchase accessories for your American Girl doll that will help normalize life events that an everyday girl has that will hopefully boost her confidence. If your daughter wears orthodontic head gear, you can buy a healthy smile set for $14. If your child is in a wheelchair, your doll can be too for $38. A hearing aid can be added to any doll for $14 and if your child has food allergies, you can buy an allergy-free lunch with safe {plastic} foods and a faux allergy shot for $28. Boosting confidence? Check.
I used to play pretend school all the time when I was a kid. One summer, my best friend and I charged the neighborhood kids $5 a day to go to our school. We even had a field trip to the fire station on our block.
If your daughter loves school like I did, you can buy Mary Ellen's classroom set for $40. It includes a two sided map, chalkboard, stand, pointer and a set of flashcards. You can even get a school supply set with a backpack filled with paper, pencils and a book for only $30.
I'm a big fan of encouraging music and the arts. You can purchase a music and entertainment set for $85. Or purchase a painting set just for your doll for $36! Ignite creativity? Check.
Does your daughter have an entrepreneurial spirit? Maybe she loves to bake and dreams of one day owning a cupcake shop. You can get a complete pastry set and cart for $150. The pastry set has a cart with pretend treats and business supplies. If a gourmet kitchen set is something she dreams of, you can buy one for $225. Fuel connections? Check.
There are so many fun creative products available in the American Girl catalog and on their website that every girl is sure to find something that she will love.
But I couldn't help but notice that while I could buy doll sized accessories that will help "boost confidence, ignite creativity and fuel connections," I could also do the same thing for real actual people purchasing real actual items that would create a lasting impact.
You know that last line in the American Girl promise statement about reminding the world--and girls, how strong, brilliant and brave they are? Well friends, I want to remind the world that there are real girls facing real issues that are strong and brilliant and brave. Whose lives could be changed if you swapped out buying a dolls bike with faux leather seat for a real bike for a girl in need so that she can attend school.
How to survive when you hand your keys over to your teen driver
Green Beans with Bacon, the perfect Thanksgiving dinner side dish
Kate is back with another fantastic recipe! In case you are looking for a last-minute side dish or another way to add vegetables into your family dinner, these green beans with bacon are sure to be a hit! Take it away Kate!
A Thanksgiving side dish ready in under 30 minutes, count me in!
Add this to your Thanksgiving dinner to make your day less stressful, more enjoyable and you'll get to the table faster. Or be like me and add it to your weekly rotation! It's casual, yet impressive and quick!!
green beans (enough to feed your group) (fresh or frozen)
1/2 onion diced
3 garlic cloves chopped
juice of one lemon
4-5 pieces of bacon chopped (reserve 1 tbsp of grease)
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
zest of half lemon
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp olive oil
Boil green beans until just under cooked. Drain and set aside. While beans boil cook bacon until done but not crispy. I did mine my cast iron skillet. Reserve 1 tbsp of grease in a large pan. Add olive oil and salute onions over medium heat until translucent.
Add beans, garlic and bacon to pan and cook until beans are coated and garlic is tender. Add balsamic vinegar and stir for one minute and then remove from heat.
Add lemon juice, zest and season with salt and pepper.
You can serve it warm but it's also delicious at room temp or cold!
Free printable for your Keurig K cups
I don't know about you, but I am slightly obsessed with my Keurig. I'm not a "give me a whole pot of coffee" kind of gal, so one cup here or there serves me just right most of the time, which is why I love popping in a K cup here and there.
But those K cups need some personality, don't you think? I like pretty things and I like witty sayings. Combine the two and you have a winner in my books.
I decided to create a little printable that I could put over the top of my K cups. They make me happy when I use them in the morning. And lucky for you, I'm giving you a free printable, so that you can make some yourself too!
Put the screen down: How to unplug your plugged in family
This post has been rattling around in my mind for the better part of a year. I have felt convicted and then felt judgey. I have felt all the feels and so I always went back to just not writing it, but here I am again, revisiting this because a Facebook friend inspired me with this post she wrote on her personal page this morning.
"We showed up early for an appointment yesterday. Another family was in the same room. The boy, about 8, on his DS. Each parent on their phones. To kill time, I taught the Ewok how to make a "cootie catcher" and we spent 20 minutes counting, spelling, reading "you get to vacuum your room!", "You are smart!", "You are a good friend" etc. Mainly we laughed. He kept looking over at the other family, trying to catch their eyes and engage them. None of them looked up, at him or each other.
I wanted to tell them to come out here with us. Be curious. Engage. Have fun. But I also know that if we had a kid that could have screens, we could've been them, at that moment."
This. It was this. I will say that I tend to fall in the camp of the more conservative when it comes to screen time. I have a background in child development and I truly believe that children learn what they live.
Fall grass wreath inspired by the JuJu hat
I just love it when I have a vision and it turns out as awesome as I hoped it would. This fall grass wreath is one of those awesome visions that turned out even better than I hoped. If you follow me on Instagram, you got a sneak peek not too long along. I'm not sure you can get a full grasp of the scale of this thing from this picture though.
There. Can you see how massive this is? It's probably about four feet in diameter! It's pretty impressively amazing.
I ended up hanging it on my back patio under the covered part in hopes that it will survive the winter. Plus it looks pretty amazing right there don't you think?
Want to know what inspired this vision that I had? It may have also required a little sneaky pruning outside of a local neighborhood.
$500 Amazon gift card giveaway!!!
GIVEAWAY DETAILS
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