[Year in Review] Favorite 2011 Memories

When the year draws to an end, I alway find myself reflecting upon the year gone by. Here's a run down of my favorite memories in 2011.

Visiting our BFF's in Portland, Oregon & our road trip to Victoria & Vancouver, B.C.

1st row : fishin' adventures in oregon 2nd row: pretty peacock, yummy burgers in helvetia, oregon; drive from portland to port angeles, washington; flower baskets in victoria, b.c. 3rd row: victoria, b.c.; candy shop; empress hotel (great place to stay); ferry to vancouver, b.c. 4th row: the four seasons, vancouver; yummy treats in our room; chef's kitchen tour, smarty pants spraying chocolate on the desserts; the four seasons

 just to keep it real, this trip also involved some bad memories-- namely sick kids with 105+ temps and an evil harley dude with road rage in BFE rural Washington.. pffft on him!  :)

"A Padawan you will be" -- spoken with Yoda's accent

smarty pants kicked up the courage to do "jedi training"... twice this year.  this is my quiet guy, so his courage (and intensity) took me by surprise.  he was the first to run to the stage when a "dark presence" was felt... what a neat experience.

Smarty Pants starting Kindergarten & Happy Vee starting Preschool

they both love school and have learned & matured a lot in the past few months.

Getting my craft on...

1. golden beans 2. shell & stone plant mat 3. book page rose 4. satin ribbon poinsettia wreath

5-7 three new trees 8. rhinestone ornaments 9. silica gel ornaments 10. feather ornament

11. felt poinsettias 12. salt dough tags 13. beaded ornaments 14. felt pinecone ornament

15. modern nutcrackers 16. pearl ornament 17-20. four versions of snow globe ornaments 21. gift card pouch

seriously, i don't know where all that energy came from in november & december-- 21 projects in 1.5 months.  now i need to refocus that energy into putting the finishing touches in our master & the boys' rooms... not to mention the office, craft room & garage (gah!)

Smarty Pants playing basketball

i may complain about our weekends being taken over by practice & games, but boy is it fun to watch a bunch of 5 year olds play ball! love his "game" face. 

Happy Vee and his antics...

this little guy is full of character & has the greatest delivery... our little comedian. he convincingly told the skateboard's much older owner to "go get food... it's really good", then, when the boy was out of sight, snuck in some skateboard playing time.  future politician? (eek)

Solvang and our Friends' Rustic Wedding

the kids refer to it as "remember when we danced in the barn?"  it was an amazing wedding, with a lot of personal & creative touches, in a beautiful local.  and the best part was the couple--  one of our longtime, childhood friends (i've known him since 2nd grade) and his awesome, creative & beautiful bride.  the wedding made a great impression on the boys... the precedence has been set!

Lots of reading... for the 2nd year in a row thanks to my Kindle & my new Kindle Fire

when you have to sit with children as they go to sleep, you tend to have a lot of quiet time!

Thanks so much for following along with me this year. I have a lot of new ideas in store for next year.  May 2012 be full of good health, lots of creativity and great times with family and friends.

xoxo,

New Year's Eve Ideas

How do you celebrate the Eve of a New Year? Do you go out? Do you stay home? Friends or Family or Both? Here are some fun DIY ideas from around the web.

new year's eve countdown bags. i'm going to attempt to put this together for the boys... but secretly i'm hoping they don't make it past 9 pm.  :)

via the idea room

and these ones are pretty darn cute too via  hoosier homemade :: as seen on someday crafts

sequin photo booth via oh happy day

new year's mirror ball via compulsive craftiness :: as seen on craft gawker

new year's party in a box via dandee

sequin bauble ring via martha stewart

sequin stir sticks via somewhere splendid

diy confetti system via punky style

happy new years card... this is great if you didn't get your christmas cards out in time

 via the craft dept

As for us, since having kids, we're homebodies... which I enjoy.  I always found that although New Year's Eve is marketed as being the pinnacle of celebrations... it would usually fall flat.  Too expensive, too crowded and someone always ends up spilling on your favorite shoes.  Am I right?

When the kids are a little older, I'd love to throw a family-friendly New Years Eve bash, but until then...  it's all about our little family of 4 staying up late (or at least trying to) and cuddling on the couch while listening to good music and nibbling on yummy snacks.  Can't think of a better way to ring in the New Year!

Have a Safe & Happy New Year!

[Year in Review] Favorite Blogs & Inspirations

a lot of things.  

but these are some of my favorites, pulled from my [weekly inspiration] posts--

dans le townhouse's felted craspedia (aka billy buttons)

i've had the felt roving for a while... this project will be happening soon.

dirtsa studio's chalkboard wall art

i need something cool & fun in my kitchen... a map drawn on chalkboard material... definitely a candidate.

under the sycamore's dot painted ceramics

i've been admiring these for a couple of years now... maybe this is the year.

ombre, found just about everywhere...

i'm not sure why, but i'm drawn to this...

craftberry bush's succulent pot

another on the to-do list!

okay art's gold leaf chair

will i ever tire of shiny stuff? nah.

cocoa & heart's contemporary art

looks easy, but i know it's not.  love the colors.

union jack love... also just about everywhere this year

2011 = will + kate = ♥ = union jack = we americans eat this stuff up = i still love it.

organic style magazine's costume jewelry wreath

one day i will have 200 pieces of costume jewelry to assemble a wreath like this... ;)

~♥♥♥~

And a big "THANK YOU" to these sites for directing so many visitors to this lil' blog.  I seek them out on a daily basis for my creativity fix.  If you haven't already done so, be sure to check them out!

     

[Year in Review] My Favorite Projects in 2011

So yesterday I shared my top visited posts in 2011.  Now here are MY favorite projects from this year. Some were very easy, and some a bit more complex (ahem... birthday party!), but they each remind me of special moments throughout the year.

Fall Mantel

the mister liked the bottle & wheat display and even voiced disappointment when i took it down to put up the christmas decorations... i took a mental note because i don't think he's ever noticed anything on our mantel before!  :) 

 Policeman Party

smarty pant's 5th birthday... my little guy is growing up (sniff!)

Zzzz's wall art

the zzzz's sorta worked... he sleeps half of the night in this bed, and the rest camping out in a sleeping bag at the base of our bed.  as long as i'm not being woken up, i'll take it!

Painted Leaves

i love how this turned out.  it made a great runner for our thanksgiving table.

Felt Fortune Cookies

these were a fun memento for Chinese New Year. everyone really enjoyed the personal fortune... and the chocolate that i stuffed in there.

Stone Mat

this now sits on our kitchen table.  it adds just the right natural/contemporary vibe... and the kids have yet to pick it apart.

Moss Eggs

i don't know why i like these.  they're kinda strange, yet interesting in a green, earthy way... nuff said.

Crane Ceiling Art

this hangs in happy vee's room.  although he now refuses to sleep in his bedroom, he does like to swing the door back and forth to make the birds fly.  i think it's the perfect touch for his "around the world" themed room.  now we just need to get him back in there!

Felt Tissue Box Covers

 

these guys have fared well... and with two boys, that's saying a lot.   much, much better than the floral boxes that formerly graced their rooms.

Snow Globe Ornaments

these are a great addition to the tree.  sadly, they will be put away soon... very soon.  :)