On the Christmas Wish List

I know it is not even December yet and I am already talking about Christmas gifts, BUT yesterday my husband had the day off and some of the big toy stores were having a sale. 
So you know what that means?

I took my youngest out shopping with me (since he hardly has any opinion yet on Christmas gifts anyways) and the girls stayed home with daddy. The 2 hours I spent out was actually pretty nice and calming in a way and I'm glad I got the chance to do it because it doesn't happen often these days.

Here are some items that I was able to get (and some were on sale too which was an added bonus).

 

Melissa and Doug Medical Staff Outfit

To our surprise, our middle child simply loves playing doctor. No idea where that comes from, but she loves giving all of us a check-up complete with band-aids and medicine when we are "hurt" or feeling "sick". I think she will love getting to wear the hospital jacket so she feels legit.

 

Daniel Tiger Bath Toys

This one wasn't on any particular Christmas wish list, but when I saw it at the store I thought it was too cute to pass up. Plus, my girls actually LOVE bath time. I mean they LOVE LOVE LOVE it. They have a couple of bath toys but this couldn't hurt to add to the list. And since they also love Daniel Tiger, I figured this was a win-win!

I also purchased a few things off of a Dollar Rack at the store yesterday for their stockings. Little things like a pocket book with crayons, stickers, and some foam water toys.

This year, I am also ordering a couple of things online...one which I can't wait to write a blog about so you won't see it pictured here yet! 

However, one of the items I am ordering online is a V-Tech camera. I am only ordering one so our girls will have to share it (we will see how that works out!) but I know they will love it. We went to a birthday party last weekend and their friend had this particular camera and they just didn't want to let it go. I'm sure they would have taken it home with them if given the chance!

 

Amazon is selling this one for much cheaper than some of the stores I have already looked at so ordering it online seems like the best choice.

Other than that, they will be getting some things from family as well so we aren't going to go over board with gifts this year. Actually, I hope we never go overboard with gifts (not only at Christmas but birthdays as well) if you know what I mean. It is easy to do, especially seeing that as they get older some of the things they will no doubt want will come with a bigger price tag. Heaven help us when that happens!! 

What I Bought Recently

You may have seen these things out there called pom-poms. And we're not talking about the cheer-leading kind.

They are cute little balls of yarn that you can make on your own and I fell in love a while back.

Have you ever tried making these?
They aren't that difficult to create and there are a ton of tutorials out there that help.
BUT, I never had any luck making them fluffy on my own using a fork and some yarn like I've read you can do....SO, I caved and bought a Pom-pom maker with a gift card that I had at JoAnns craft store. 

And that did the trick....these little contraptions make pom-poms in no time and they turn out so full. Plus, they come in different sizes!

I won't go into detail about how you make one of these with a pom-pom maker since there are tons of videos and tutorials out there already (fyi- I did watch a few videos online) but you basically wrap your yarn around the pom-pom maker, cut it down the middle, and fluff the yarn. That's it in a nutshell! (but you will probably want to watch a tutorial/video about how to do it).
The pom-pom maker won't have you breaking the bank either...they are well under $10 for 2...not too shabby!

 

This is a photo I pulled off of Amazon of the pom-pom maker, but you can purchase them at other stores as well.  

We made some for the girls room in pink and purple (the color of their choice) and put it on the faux fireplace. Pictures to come soon of their poms when I can get to it.

In the meantime, we've been thinking about Thanksgiving coming up and Christmas and getting ready for the holidays. Can't wait!

Filling Your Home with Memories (starting with photos)

When I was much younger, I took tons of pictures. And when I say tons, I mean TONS ya''ll! 
For example, I remember a weekend trip I took with some of my girlfriends in college. On that trip, I took lots of pictures of what we did and I even took pictures of what we ate. Seriously. No. Joke.
Yeah, weird, I know! My friends laughed at it then and still do to this day...and I admit, it was kind of silly. But never-the-less, I loved documenting every little thing. I have the scrapbook of that trip and many others somewhere in this house. ;)

Fast forward about 10 years later- married with 3 kids- and here I am hardly taking any photos. I do document things my kids do and even have a baby album for each one of them with little quotes and milestones they have achieved, but that doesn't compare to what I use to be like when I documented everything going on in my life. This may have happened because things are just busier now and there is so much more I am interested in doing so it is hard to find the time to carry a camera around everywhere. Whatever the case, I have realized that I want to fill my home with good memories of my family and for me, that starts with photos.

In our last house, I had a gallery wall leading up the stairs. I covered both sides of the wall with photos. I do believe that was a bit much and did look a bit cluttered...so when we moved into this new home, I didn't want to overload the walls. I ended up redoing the gallery wall going up the stairs in our new home after we painted and added a few simple larger black and white pictures to it that I will share here. The house is scattered with photos now of our family and friends and kids art work and that feels like just the right amount of balance now. Not too much and not too little. Here are some pictures of what I mean.

                            FYI- I am seriously loving that view out our kitchen window!!


Wedding photos, trips we have taken, and family memories are what you will see in our home now when you walk around.

Living Room Progress

I also hope to grow this gallery wall in our living room someday. That will take time and I am okay with that. It doesn't all have to be filled up right now.