Kensie Turns Two

It is so hard to believe that my baby is two. There are times when I feel like time is going SO SLOW, but in all reality it's flying by! We had a cute little breakfast just the four of us on her actual birthday which was on Thursday, then celebrated with family on Sunday.

On her birthday I just made a little short stack of pancakes which is her favorite thing ever, and put some fun little picks in them from Target.

She was so excited to blow the candles out and got them both on the first try!

Her favorite show ever is Yo Gabba Gabba, so I went all out with that theme for this years party.  My mom always orders their cakes for their birthdays from an amazing cake shop here in town and my step mom catered the whole thing.  I made the pinwheels, tassel garland and cupcake fringe picks, and ordered the "Yo Kensie is 2" printables from Reddish Orange on etsy.

 She devoured the cupcake pretty quickly!

Kensie, you are such a beautiful little girl inside and out. You are crazy, sweet, loving and a tornado all rolled into one. Thank you for making our family complete.  We love you to the moon and stars and back!

Seasons

Well, since I have been gone from blogging, a lot has happened. I'll start from the beginning so it all comes together. When Kaydence was about three, I decided that I was going to homeschool her when the time came. I had toyed with different learning games and ideas since she was only three we still had A LOT of time. I kept trying to build my business and just did what I needed to do to keep her up with where she should be since she wasn't in an organized preschool. Then my second daughter Kensington was born and Kaydence turned four. Homeschool was still just a tid bit here and a tid bit there as I continued to try to raise two girls and run my business. About two months ago, I realized that the time has come to focus more on my family and schooling my girls than trying to run a business that was honestly barely making it and consuming any time that I had. In March I decided to close my Etsy shop. It really felt like God was closing doors left and right for me in that area and I was too stubborn to see it. Once I realized that Kaydence will be starting Kindergarten in August, the door hit me in the face!

I cannot do everything all at once. There is no way that I can keep a healthy marriage, be a loving, nurturing mom, keep the house up and teach my children while squeezing in every spare minute I had into sewing a duvet cover or making a banner. Someone told me as I was pulling my things out of a local antique store here that this just isn't my season for trying to run a craft business.  That is so true! This is my season to be a wife and mom and it's ok to put everything else on hold for now.  At first I was a little bitter and felt a little sorry for myself that nothing had really worked out, but now I am so encouraged that God has a different path for me. So with all of that to say, I am going to keep up on this little blog a few times a week, but it will be about LIFE! Parenting, crafting, cooking, baking, homeschooling, whatever life is like for us at the time I post. I still craft for us and am a life long redecorator, so trust me I will have some crafty posts on here! I really hope you all continue to read and be inspired as so many of you all inspire me!

DIY Aqua and Gold Terra Cotta Potted Succulent

I love plants and gardening. The only problem is that I've never been a huge success with gardening outdoors. In the new house, we have possums which were enjoying what little garden I had planted last year so we really didn't see much of it at all. I am happy to say though that I have had a lot of luck with succulents. I know they aren't very hard to kill but it makes me feel good that I can keep them alive! At Home Depot the other day I came across a String of Pearls plant that I had to have! I really like the look of terra cotta pots but wanted to add my own touch to it. I took some acrylic paint and an adorable gold trim from the dollar section at Target and created a pot that I love!

Adding a little something of your own can make something plain feel so much more fun and unique! Have fun enjoying the nicer weather we've been having!

Creative Tea Time - Two

In September I attended my very first craft event called Creative Tea Time. I had no idea what to expect but knew it would be a nice relaxing day by the beach crafting and meeting new people. Little did I know it would be something that would have me on pins and needles waiting for the next one! I can't believe I didn't take any pictures last time but this time I was sure to! This time around it was held on Saturday and Sunday. I attended Saturday's tea and was so thrilled to see a lot of new friends that I made the first time around. The event is thrown by Tracy at Creme De La Gems, LeAnn at Lele's Little Soiree and Megan at Fairly Fabulous (links at the end of post). It's a day of amazing food, crafting and a ton of swag from wonderful, talented sponsors! I'll let the pictures speak for themselves!

This event is like a crafters heaven! I already can't wait for the next one! :) Visit their website here!

Dining Room Table Inspiration

Hello everyone! I wanted to share with you some inspiration that I have been finding for our dining room table. I'm wanting to re do it but cannot decide exactly what I want. I'm definitely painting the legs white, then either attaching sheet metal to the top or sanding then staining the top a dark wood color. Here are some of the pictures I've pinned for inspiration... We'll start with the wood top ones.  They are beautiful!

This picture is the one that has me swooning over the metal top! Gorgeous!

This is going to be a hard decision! What style do you all like? Has anyone tried either one?

Sponsor Spotlight and Promo Code!

Good morning everyone and I am back! Life has been a crazy one lately to say the least! I hope you are all enjoying the holiday season! This is by far my favorite time of year with the weather cooling off a little and the Christmas decor in stores! I am so happy to announce my new blog design done by LeAnn at Leles Little Soiree! She is a dear dear friend of mine and has been for many years! She is also my newest sponsor. She makes the most adorable invitations and party decor in her etsy shop! Here is just a peek at some of her work...

So when I asked her to spice up my blog I was thrilled when she said yes! And just to show how excited I am I am offering 20% off ANY ITEM IN MY ETSY SHOP! That means duvet covers too! Woot! Upon checkout use code hollyjolly to receive your discount! I added some new Christmas items yesterday too so be sure to check it out!

I hope you are all having a wonderful day!

Busy Busy Busy

Wow I have seriously been in a whirlwind the past couple of weeks! Someone asked me what I do during the day and I chuckled to myself as I listed what felt like a never ending list of responsibilities. Two weeks ago, I started home schooling my oldest daughter (which will be in a whole other post) on top of my etsy shop picking up and having a vendor space in the new shop that opened up in town. I am completely blessed to stay busy doing things that I love! Thank you everyone for all of your love and support and all of the sweet emails I receive brighten my day! With all of that being said I wanted to share with you all a couple of fun projects that I put together for the shop this week! I want to figure out shipping on these and also list them in my etsy store as well.

 The first two were made with white washed burlap canvas and the third was a piece of wood that I painted white.  Using my Silhouette SD I cut words and graphics that I liked to put on them.  A simple embellishment finished them off nicely.  I love finding new things to make, especially when it's with textiles that I love!

I hope you all have a beautiful weekend!