Christmas Home Tour 2017

Christmas is less than 10 sleeps away!  That shows how close it really is (and that it's obviously been a little quiet around here lately). Lots of life has happened since then though.  We celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary -  yay!  And with it being Hugo's first Christmas with us, we've been playing Santa for our little pup. I think he's going to love the salmon jerky in his stocking!  

I thought it might be fun to share some pictures of what we've done to spruce up our home and get into the Christmas spirit!

In other news, maybe I missed my calling to be a Christmas ornament designer (like my missed calling to name Essie nail polish colors for a living).  Anthropologie and Magnolia Market are blowing me away with their Christmas and Winter collections!  No surprise there.  And in other Magnolia news, I want to buy everything from their Hearth and Hand collection at Target.  I ended up going home with the wreath pictured above.  I might just keep it up year round!

Merry Christmas!

10 Things to Love About Fall

When the weather starts to get a little crisp and I need a jacket to take Hugo on his morning walk, I know fall is on the way.  For someone who uses the word "cozy" to describe pretty much anything I think is lovely, inspires gratitude for the life God has blessed us with, or makes me feel like things are starting fresh again, this season is my season.  Fall, you get me.  

Have you ever come across one of those books full of illustrations of pleasant things to remind you of simple pleasures?  I usually find myself smiling when I stop to look at them.  In case you need a little help getting in the mood for fall, here's a sweet little list of small fall pleasures I'm thankful for.  Good news, this list is calorie free!

Apple Picking.  Granted, I haven't actually done this, but the thought is romantic!  And with an orchard nearby, we don't really have much of an excuse not to do it.

Apple Cider with a shot of caramel.

Caramel Apples (can you tell I'm hungry?)

Soft blankets.  The kind that's so soft it's almost as though you can't feel the blanket on your fingers.  I hope that makes sense.  Bonus points if it's from the land of cozy, Pottery Barn.

Stove Simmers.  Cinnamon, cloves, orange peel.  I'm waiting for a scratch and sniff feature for the blog :)

Smelling the sunset.  That's a thing right?  When the leaves are orange, the light is golden, and the sun is saying goodbye for the day with a light breeze, it just smells like a big hug outside.

Pumpkin Patches.  And pictures of babies in plaid shirts sitting beside pumpkins in pumpkin patches.  The cuteness!

Pinterest.  Pinterest is the queen of fall.  I log on and immediately feel as though my weekend should be filled with gluing crisp leaves to Hugo's collar or some other elaborate baking project that involves leaf cookie cutters and icing decorating tutorials.

Blogging.  What's almost just as good as experiencing fall?  Talking and writing about it!  Anne of Green Gables got it right when she said half the fun is in the anticipation.

Reading outside.  When the weather is nice, laying out a blanket and taking your time with a great book can be one of the best ways to relax.  Add a caramel apple and I'll be over in 5 minutes.

And to finish off this list, I thought I'd share this video from a blog I just found a few weeks ago (and check almost daily now!), The Inspired Room.  The beautiful illustrations show of some of the things on this list, plus some others I'm sure we all love.  

theinspiredroom.net/fall-nesting-series