I have been up to my nose in weddings the last few months. It's been a pleasant surprise to have so much unplanned business, but I'm soooooo ready to have downtime, get off my computer, and just breathe in the Holidays.

Speaking of Holidays... I did make a Bourbon Pecan Pie for Thanksgiving.
It went from this:

To this:

To this:

A happy pie, is a demolished pie!

Thanksgiving was lovely! We had all of my husband's family over to our house for good food and quality time. Aaaaaand we all took naps. Naps are one of the best indicators of a holiday, in my mind. Even the puppies napped, while I finished off my Felt Ball Garland. Rudolph dog! 

I felted all the wool several weeks ago, following this tutorial but hadn't had the time to string it. After a big meal and some chitchat on Turkey Day, I decided I was ready to see what the final product would look like. I used red & white baker's twine, and a completely random order for the different colors, and I'm in love with the result. Often I finish a Pinterest-inspired or a DIY craft project, and I hate it and want to trash it. This one, however, was lots of fun, and the final product was something I will enjoy getting out every year at Christmas for many years to come. 

After Thanksgiving was over, the hubs and I spontaneously decided to go get our tree. I've always wanted a "Charlie Brown" tree - one that was sorta scrawny and needing some love. This year I got my wish. We found the perfect little CBtree at the neighborhood tree farm.

This holiday has me very much infatuated with homemade-looking ornaments, and particularly felted creations. It's the Swedish craze.... Does anyone spot a certain polar bear ornament in there? In fact, there are several that I mentioned featured on my tree.

The best thing of all was this tree took me less than fifteen minutes to decorate (can't you tell), and I will probably change it multiple times before Christmas even arrives. But I love it.

Hope you're counting the days, right along with me!

As always, you can find me the other days of the week at alittleWhitenoise.

34 weeks and counting...

3rd trimester means... a growing belly (I mean it is getting hard to put shoes on big), sharp back pains, a baby kicking my rib and making it sore for over a month, swelling feet and a heightened sense of anticipation and readiness for our baby to enter this world! I have 6 more weeks to go and I know everyone keeps telling me how time will fly, but the days seem to creep by slowly at this point as we wait for him.

I was blessed by a wonderful shower by my dear friends the weekend before Thanksgiving (I hope to share pics next week). Graeme is already so loved and he definitely will want for nothing as these people took the term shower and turned it literal with gifts. I have another shower next weekend and so these are the fun things that keep my mind occupied at the moment. I am trying to relish in every moment. The hubby and I went to 2 movies last week because we hadn't been in ages. I am trying to soak in the last few moments of being a family of 2 (with 2 more furry friends).

Here are some things about my 34th week:

Baby Greame is the size of a pineapple (he feels about as prickly as one too!) But he is definitely way cuter than one. Look at those sweet cheeks and little nose :)

Biggest cravings - sweets, which is perfect for this time of year!

Things I miss the most - sleeping on my back and running

What I love most about pregnancy - feeling our little guy move around. It is an awesome feeling and definitely a gift from God.

Happy Thursday Friends,

Danielle R.

House Style

Happy Wednesday everyone! Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and happy shopping this weekend! The one thing I kept circling back to buying this weekend was a house. Call me crazy, but after living in a 900 square foot house with Danay and 3 dogs, and a bathroom where the toilet almost touches the shower,  I'm ready for an expansion. So I'm back to planning what my next house will look like. I love the simple chic look, people who can pull that off-- I respect you. However, have you ever seen that movie Along Came Polly? You know what her house looks like... well I'm afraid my house will ever air on the side of chaos like good ol Polly. My 70 pound shedding dog that likes to destroy anything in site is a big factor, and while I love nothing more than spending an entire day cleaning my house until it's spotless.. I'm usually too lazy/exhausted to put away dishes at the end of the night. With that said, I think my house needs to have a more laid back vibe-- it's just more my style. So here are a few of my other favorite images. A girl can dream right? Which is your favorite? I think I'm going to start Etsy searching for some of these...

Images: [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]

Have a wonderful day!
-Sophee

A Few of My Favorite Things

Happy Tuesday. Tis the season to shop dear friends, and I thought I'd share a few of my favorite finds with you. Great for gift ideas or just a little something for yourself. Was that enough alliteration for you? Yes, I thought so.

1. Madewell Camden Tote (want)

2. Jo Malone Blackberry and Bay (I own this and I'm obsessed with wearing it. Very yummy)

3. Frye Melissa Button Riding Boot  (want)

4.Wysteria Linen Cocktail Napkins (so swanky, sure enough to spruce up any cocktail)

5. Nepresso Aeroccino Plus (basically heats and froths your milk in 30 seconds, I'm a coffee junkie)

6. Jonathan Adler Needlepoint Flask (need a drink? keep your liquor looking classy in this thing)

7. J Brand Chartreuse Skinny Jean (I can't stop wearing these. Loving this color, especially for fall)

8. Napa Valley Lavender Essential Oil (this stuff is SO beneficial! Especially if you need a chill pill)

9. Patagonia Nano Puff Vest (On my Christmas list. Perfect shade of green!)

10. Stella and Dot Stevie Necklace (I own this. Been wearing this about twice a week. Love)

11. Brooks Pure Cadence Running Shoe (I have these in yellow; couldn't find a yellow pair online, worth every penny)

12. Kate Spade Books -Manners, Occasions and Style (I only own the Manners book. Perfectly fun for a coffee table book or a night stand read)


I hope you found something you like! What's on your wish list?
Happy Shopping!

Transition

Get ready for a bigger word to picture ratio from me today. Yesterday, a family of 5 moved into our upstairs. Well, really 7, the mom is pregnant with twins. They are missionaries for the Katy House of Prayer and gave up everything they owned for the call of serving the community this way. Their faith ASTOUNDS me. They moved everything in, in about 7 minutes. Doesn't that sound like a dream move from heaven? Let switch gears for a second:

Different Gear (were getting on the highway) Since I moved from Lubbock in 2008 I have lived in 8 different places. Thats a lot for 4 years. 2.5 of those were married moving everywhere. Its catching up with me. Im very much a home body and its like that part of myself has been neglected with rippling  effects... of restlessness. In the book After the boxes are unpacked, it says it takes women around 2 years to fully adjust to a new place. (in searching for this book link I found there is even a support group for moving women!) Obviously if there are going to be books and support groups about it... there is some realness to my feelings.

Same Gear (different paragraph) I have recently been attached to Gilmore Girls... all over again. Rob hates this show, and so did I until my roommate in college (House 1 of 8) forced it on me everyday. Eventually the witty banter was too clever to resist. They replay the season everyday at 10 on ABC Family. ANYWAY... I finally figured out why I love it so much. I'm jealous of their routines. She lives in the same house, and its so cozy and lived in, they go to Luke's every morning for coffee. People know them and they know people. She owns her own business, which means she has to stay put.

In between gears! Car is violently shaking!: Rob applied for an exchange program last March to go to Woking (near London), or Aberdeen, Scotland for a year. We found out we were't chosen and bought a house the next day. About a month ago, his work decided to open another exchange spot in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia... and Rob was next on the list. If we are going... we leave in January for a year and transition yet again to a whole new everything. Yes it sounds amazing and will probably be amazing, but I still have my inner homebody screaming at me NO! we just got here! We are waiting on one more crucial piece of info before its final and I will have to tell my homebody self to shut up for another while.

Pit stop at Grandmas: Over thanksgiving we went to Rob's grandma's house. MamaCoy and I got up before everyone else and sat talking one morning over coffee about all of this. She talked about how hard moving is and how she moved over and over again, and how nice it was to finally settle. It was good to be heard and to realize this is a very gender specific thing.

Drive to dealership and trade for an automatic: The potential move is the reason we have a family living upstairs... with nothing, they needed everything in our house. Perfect right!? But really the bigger testament is the mom pregnant with twins willing to transition more than I have in the last 4 years in 1 year for the call of Christ, not comfort. And that puts it all in perspective. I don't think homebody Danielle is evil, in fact, I think that she is just part of the collective womanhood. But if we are sent to Malaysia... then there is a reason, a God reason, that I will seek out and will learn to re-prioritize my need for comfort and safety.

If you would like to know more about the family and their mission please go here.

-Danielle G. 

Thanksgiving time

Happy almost Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving for me is a time to eat too much, be surrounded by loud/crazy family, to take naps, and to drink Bloody Marys. It is one of my absolute favorite holidays (Christmas trumps). It seems to have all the ingredients of a big holiday but with half the stress. You invite family, they come if they want. There are no obligations to be together for Thanksgiving. Which makes me even more grateful when we all do get to be together. For us, it's also the one time of year (not kidding-one) that my family cooks. And since we all want to bake at least 2 things- we end up with 15 items needing to go in the oven and one oven. So we use our wonderful neighbors house to crate food (and last year the turkey) back and forth. See below from last year-- this is a glimpse of my Thanksgiving.

Remember this year if it does get a little stressful, to think about what you are thankful for. A few of mine:

• My crazy family
• God's unfailing love for me
• My dogs
• Dogs in general
• My job- we have a love hate relationship, but I'm actually incredibly happy and grateful to have my dream job
• Hummus and crackers
• Coffee 
• Austin, TX

It really does make you feel better just writing out a list of what you are thankful for. I challenge you all to do it. Then sit back, relax, and enjoy Thanksgiving! If nothing else, it's a Thursday without work :)

-Sophee

It's Beginning

to look a lot like Christmas. It feels early every year no? Oh well. I can't resist me some charlie brown songs anyway. We (the blogstresses) are taking the rest of the week off for Thankgiving... so I leave you with

My goals for this week:

1. Read and finish 2 books {this one and this one}
2. Not eat THAT much, its not fair that I gained 7 lbs before thanksgiving :/
3. Make more invites for the store
4. Figure out what to do with myself in 2013! {ideas welcomed}

I leave you with my mornings creation...

can be found here

... AND check these printables and T-Gives tree idea

 (via JonesDesignCompany - whom I LOVE) 

super cute, and free!

DIY "I DO"

I had very few friends in my time in Fort Worth, but one of them is Chelsie. We were the behaviorizing duo of Birdville ISD!! She asked me to help on a few things for her wedding. I immediately recruited the creative mind and wedding planning skills of Laurel. THANK GOD. Laurel even came to houston to help me. The following are pictures of the crafting process... (pretend you can hear the Pasty Cline pandora station in the background...)

Please know these supplies were not easily obtained. I was harassed by 2 elderly women about when it was my turn to cut fabric. #grannysgotagun

Usually Lola is my helper, but Sam wanted to see how much of the fabric she could put her body on.

 Tie to kitchen chairs and BEGIN!

Still Observing

 And Wah-Lah! A perfect backdrop to a country wedding! (test run in the back yard)

THE ACTUAL WEDDING:

Candy Apples with Stick Handles... CUTE... I sadly had no part in this idea

Polaroid "Photobooth" Dawning of New Day Font

WHEAT! Got a huge bunch for cheap at Home Goods!

Her mom and aunts did her flowers :) 

Laurel feeling very serious about the chalkboard work I did... Chalk is difficult. 

We wore basically the same thing on accident. And I look like Im 11. 

          

Chelsie won this old chalkboard at an auction! 

I would like to say how jealous I am that instagram happened 6 months after my wedding... Check out some of the insta-beauties Chelsie and Jerrett LYDAY got at their hashtag #cheeseburgerandfrenchfries

Gobble Bourbon Gobble

via

I totally jumped the gun last week by getting all hyped about Christmas decorations, and practically skipped my favorite food holiday of the year: Thanks-TURKEY-giving! This year, what I'm most excited about is reprising my Bourbon Pecan Pie. 

MMMMMMMMM....

However, I have a bad habit of never remembering what recipes I use for anything. I do have a recipe book, and a myriad of cookbooks, but I often find things last minute on Pinterest or allrecipes.com, and then also make my own alterations to those recipes which I don't write down. Last year, my pie was - literally - a slice of heaven. I was not alone in this feeling, so I think it's okay to say it here publicly. 

So I said to myself: "Self, How am I going to reproduce it if I don't have the recipe? "
Self responded: "The only option is to find a recipe that HAS to be even better."

After some searching, I found this recipe: Maple Bourbon Pecan Pie. I'm not sure I'll do ALL the steps, like toasting the pecans, etc -- those seem a little tedious -- but I do like opting for maple syrup over corn syrup, for sure. I mean, if we're going to put good tasting stuff in our body, let's at least make it with good, quality ingredients instead of highly processed ones.

But let's all be honest here: really this recipe won because the pictures make you want to eat that heaven right now.

via

Am I right, or am I right? 

What's on YOUR thanksgiving menu?

As always, you can find me the other days of the week at alittleWhitenoise.

New traditions

This will be our last Christmas as a family of two under our roof. As I start thinking about the holidays, I get so excited about Graeme experiencing them for the first time with us next year. As we all grow up and get married, traditions change and new ones must begin. So here are some ideas I found on Pinterest that I hope to start incorporating as our family grows.

A Christmas Jar

A Christmas Jar is a great new tradition to help spread the holiday spirit and encourage random acts of kindness.

Consider starting a new family tradition this year, pass on the spirit of the holiday and give a money jar anonymously to someone who could really use one.

The Christmas Jar tradition started in 2005 by author Jason F. Wright with his family.

He went on to publish his family's idea in the book Christmas Jars which became a New York Times Best Selling Book and a new Christmas Classic and Penny's Christmas Miracle Jar as a version for kids.

From http://www.squidoo.com/christmas-jars 

Advent Calendar Activities

Our holidays center a lot on family activities. Instead of gifts and goodies, I printed little cards for the advent pockets. Each one lists something we can do together each day. Some have “choose a special Christmas goodie” though. Most of the activities are ones we already attend or do anyway, so it’s a no brainer to include them. 

               

From http://kimmccrary.blogspot.com/2010/12/activities-advent.html

CHRISTmas Ornaments

Make 25 ornaments with the names of Jesus with your children and hang a new one on the tree each day in December. Directions on how they made theirs are here http://www.iammommahearmeroar.net/2011/11/christmas-kojo-designs.html 

             

What are some traditions you have started that you love?

Danielle R. 

On to the next project...

Happy Wednesday all! As I still seem to be wrapping up wedding tasks (you wouldn't believe what continues to linger after those things... clean and preserve the dress, 'oops' you have a balance here, final returns) the last thing I want to do is put any thought into another wedding. Now don't get me wrong, looking through weddings and pinning ideas is my most beloved hobby, but for now I'm going to focus on a new project. Project-- settle down. I'm beginning to realize, there comes a point in every person's life when small presents don't seem to mean as much any more. Don't get the wrong idea here, I still love getting new boots and candles, but as I'm preparing my Christmas list this year, I seem to have larger things in mind. Should I pick something I can invest in long term... longer than say a new pair of patterned pants anyways (hmm.. come to think of it those do need to be on my list). I've been looking at interior design a lot lately, planning my future house. So since I've never decorated a house before, I thought I'd start from the beginning. I'm torn between a homely, more ecclectic look and a clean cool feel. Here are some of my favorites from a softer simple pallet. 

Love those bar stools

Definitely like the rug

This is just picture perfect... however with a black dog I don't think I can do anything remotely close to white in my house..

Large mirror is a check..

Definitely like the backsplash here and the wide open shelves. I'm going to have to work on my level of cleanliness as I prepare for my future home-- right now I can't image not having doors on my cabinets. But I'm thinking about it... off to a good start!

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone... half way through the week!!