Category: holiday

2011, boys, holiday, home, husband

2011 recap

by casadeberry2 Comments on 2011 recap

I realize it is still a few days until the year is over but I saw this adorable idea and had to make my own — I saw it on pinterest but I do not know where the original link is from — if anyone knows please let me know so I can give proper credit, or if it is something for sale I will remove my post. But for now, here it is, a review of our 2011:

I also made one in Spanish – so if you habla español, here is that one:

I made it in Photoshop, it was pretty easy, and it would make a great newsletter as well – have a wonderful holiday weekend!

2011, boys, decor, holiday, house

Christmas lights

by casadeberryLeave a Comment on Christmas lights

This is what one side of the house looks like at night:

I would show you the other side but cars are parked in front ;D

The wreath looks so festive with the lights – all white – and in front there is a net of lights thrown over the ivy bush so the elephant on the ball can rest there. My boys were obsessed with all things elephant and we just had to get that decoration for them. They also love the snowman and little elf next to the elephant.

You can barely make this out but it looks so cool in person – to the right of the windows you may see some large snowflakes falling on the wall. My husband found this projector years ago that has disks for every holiday – hearts for Valentines, pumpkins for Halloween, etc. – that we project at the appropriate time of year. It adds a little flair to the outside of our house. We don’t have a porch, just a little entryway that is pretty dark so most of the decorations and lights are on this side of the house.

Things are ramping up to our holiday weekend, we’re visiting with friends and relatives and I am enjoying seeing this wonderful time through my boys eyes. That’s truly the best gift of all.

2011, about me, boys, family, holiday

Taking a moment

by casadeberry2 Comments on Taking a moment

We’re going full throttle around here. It’s the holidays — there are things to do, things to clean, things to make, things to buy, things to cook — and life is busier than ever. Which is why it’s important to me, in the midst of all this wonderful chaos, that we take time to simply be.

As much as I love Starbucks’ Caramel Brulee Latte, I’m not willing to plunk down $4 every morning, so I’m using our Caramel and Vanilla Torani syrups to make a reasonable copy. Then my darling husband got me this and I’ve been LOVING my morning coffee:

It’s non-alc, yo, so don’t freak about my driving the boys around in a Real Happy mood ;D

Always – ALWAYS – dreaming of my favorite city in the world. I’ve been here a few times, never when it’s snowed, though, so when one of my favorite bloggers posted this today I just had to snag the pic:

I mean, seriously. Wrapped up in a (faux) fur jacket, walking arm-in-arm with my sweetheart, then ducking into a cozy cafe for some warming up and people-watching. Someday.

I recently gave in to my tingling little hands and grabbed some beads. I used to have a jewelry business and although I do not have one now, once in a while I feel the urge to make something pretty. So I made something with this:

Pendant

I’ll show you in a few days ;D but how perfect is this? A pendant with a map of Paris, in turquoise. Hello?!?!

Enjoying a few days with my mama, she’s spending some time with us and we’re having a great time. It would be better if I hadn’t been sick most of the week, because this nasty cough and sore throat thing is annoying me to no end. At least the stomach thing is over. You really don’t want to know.

Enjoying my family. The boys are off for two weeks as of this afternoon so I mean to take lots of pics, do lots of crafts, and just spend lots of time hanging out with them. I love that my youngest is a total snuggle-bunny, and my oldest, although a self-proclaimed big boy, is still sweet enough to want to cuddle with me. My husband and I have some alone time planned as well, nothing super romantic but just being able to hang out and talk without the chaos of life is gift enough.

So, I hope you have a great weekend, and I hope I get rid of the last of my germies, too!

2011, decor, friends, holiday, home, kitchen, red

Delicate ornamentation

by casadeberry4 Comments on Delicate ornamentation

My friend K recently gave me these gorgeous little ornaments – aren’t they sweet?


They are laser cut wood and very delicate and pretty. I debated whether to spray paint them but decided to leave them in their beautiful natural state and just added a little rhinestone for bling.


I hung them above the entry from the living room to the kitchen, since the red background would make them pop.


I spent A LOT of time in the kitchen watching dishes so I can just look up and see these beauties.


Some of them twirl back and forth and look so lovely.

Thank you Kat — I love you and my ornaments!!!

2011, candle, decor, glam, gold, holiday, ikea, white

Corner bookcase all decked out

by casadeberryLeave a Comment on Corner bookcase all decked out

We have a little bookcase in the dining room – it has most of our cookbooks and fits perfectly in a little corner. I decided to jazz it up with some holiday goodness this past weekend:

To the left are the doors going out to the side deck, but our avocado and pear tree block most of the light. Since this corner can get a little dark, I chose some bright accents in gold and white.

First is a beloved picture of my boys. I’ve had this frame for decades but it’s usually on one of the living room bookcase shelves. Now it gives some much needed glam to my little bookcase. The floral fabric is from a runner my mom made — she made a few some years ago and I love to add them throughout my house. The red and green candle holder is cute but gets lost in the larger decorations so I put it here.

Then comes another candle craft I made with candy canes, this one in a mason jar. I added a taper, taper ring and glittery bow.

Last are my white lantern from IKEA and a rustic gold star I got at Pier One.

The bookcase looks so cheerful now — I am very lucky to have so many little areas to decorate. Hope you like my corner bookcase!

2011, candle, craft, decor, holiday

Candy cane candle

by casadeberry12 Comments on Candy cane candle

After seeing this idea on pinterest, I decided to make a couple of holiday crafts with some candy canes – that’s right, Christmas candle crafts with candy canes. It’s all about the alliteration.

I have a couple of glittery white candles, one of which I chose for this project. The easiest way to keep the candy canes under control was with the help of a rubber band:

Once all the candy canes were secured, I added a pretty bow to cover up the rubber band and give the finishing touch:

Simple, but so pretty and colorful:

Hope you enjoyed this little craft!

Thursday Favorite Things

2011, decor, holiday

New Christmas stockings on the mantel

by casadeberry10 Comments on New Christmas stockings on the mantel

I recently had a gift card left over from my birthday loot and decided to buy new Christmas stockings for our family. I think it’s the second thing I’ve ever bought from Pottery Barn because their prices are usually ridiculous, but these were super reasonable – $9 for the little ones, and $16 for the large ones, embroidery included and free shipping.


I like how they coordinate and look cohesive. I didn’t want anything fancy or with any designs, just our names. My husband and I had made stockings for each other when we were first dating, but we never made anything for our boys – I know, right, bad parents! – they had stockings but they were just plain. If you look at my oldest’s stocking (third from left) you will see a tiny stocking hanging from the same hook. He has a stuffed toy elephant that he loves so I bought a mini stocking and added an elephant pin in honor of Soft Elephant.

Our old stockings are hanging around the house – the boys’ plain stockings are hanging on their doors, mine is up by my desk, and my husband’s is by his desk.

Thursday Favorite Things

2011, blue, candle, decor, glam, green, holiday, husband, ikea, love, office, paris, turquoise

My glam office shelf

by casadeberry5 Comments on My glam office shelf

I was at Michaels the other day and saw a few ornaments I had to have, in my favorite colors of 2011 – turquoise and olive green. I added some items I had at home to complete the look.


From left to right: IKEA vase with Christmas greenery from Michaels clearance last year, Noel ornament and scroll ornament from current Michaels selection. I don’t remember where I got the snowman!!!
Target frame from 2009. Eiffel tower ornament from Pier One.
Cupcake pedestal, gift from my dear friend K, with garland we’ve had for years and glittery white candle. Little Christmas tree my husband put on my desk, it changes colors ;D Green lantern from IKEA.
Candlestick from Goodwill, spray-painted ORB with plan taper and the most fabulous peacock ornament, again, from Michaels. Their ornaments are 50% off so each of the three ornaments I got were $2.50 – $3.00 – score! LOVE print from Made by Girl.

So there you have my sparkly glam shelf – full of items that mean a lot to me (mini tree from my hubby, pic of my boys, gift from a dear friend) and items that make me smile, with the most beautiful sentiment of all, LOVE, as the background. Hope you enjoyed the peek into a corner of my world. Have a great weekend!

2011, boys, bright, colors, decor, family, holiday, home, house, husband, kids, living room

Christmas inside and out

by casadeberry7 Comments on Christmas inside and out

My two oldest men took on the task of putting up Christmas lights a couple of nights ago. My youngest decided it was too cold and went back inside with his mama.

Our house is all prettied up now – good job, boys!

We set up the tree a few nights ago, with my oldest son being the main decorator. I should have gotten some video. “I can’t find the perfect place for this one, mama. It just doesn’t make sense here.” Mm-hmm. I helpfully said, “just put it down and leave it for later.” He glared at me.

I think he did a wonderful job:

The little village underneath has been collected over the years and adds a sweet touch. My boy took these pics:

We like to turn the tree on and enjoy the sparklies. I light my candles and sip a bit of cocoa — my boys do not like hot chocolate for now — and we snuggle in the cold California evenings. Laugh if you will, but it is 45 degrees out there as I am typing and we do not turn the heater on in the evenings.

I am waiting for a couple of things before I show you the mantel – but for now I hope you enjoyed seeing our outside lights and our tree. It’s fake, because the cats can’t help themselves.

boys, california, family, holiday, husband

Christmas in the Park

by casadeberry3 Comments on Christmas in the Park

It has become a holiday tradition for Gran and Grandpa to take our little family to Christmas in the Park. This year it was even more special because my sister-in-law, K, is here from Sweden where she lives with her husband. We all met at the light rail station and took the train to downtown San Jose.

During the walk from the downtown station to the park:

I love taking pics of my handsome men 😀

Here are my men with Gran and Grandpa, and Auntie K.

My little man’s favorite perch is his daddy’s shoulders – thank goodness he is still small enough!

My husband, his sister K, and the boys on the train – it was free until 6pm, score!

My youngest hams it up for mama’s camera 😀

My oldest did not want to go on the Ferris wheel

But my youngest was game, so he and I went up!

Last night was also the tree-lighting ceremony, I caught a pic as the tree was lit

We had a great time looking at all the displays – thanks Gran and Grandpa!