New Year's Resolutions {and a printable}

As 2013 is quickly approaching, resolutions are sure to be coming too.  

Resolutions to eat healthier, exercise more, clean-up our homes, read the latest best-selling books, etc will be on the forefront of our minds. 

It's easy to be inspired by a new year and hope for new beginnings, new habits.  It is also a time of year that can be discouraging, a reminder of failed attempts.  Remember that our hope is in Christ.  He is our strength.  Our confidence comes from knowing Him, not from crossing off our to-do list.

As the new year approaches, let's focus on the health of our relationship with Christ, on exercising our faith, cleaning-up our hearts, and reading the Word more.

Click on the image to enlarge then right-click to save to your computer

 ("control" & mouse click on a Mac) and print!   

Sweet Cornbread & Cinnamon Honey Butter

Do you want delicious cornbread that is not as crumbly as traditional cornbread?  Mix it with a yellow cake mix.

And then top it off with the *best* honey butter. 

Seriously, this stuff is so good you could eat spoonfuls of it.

CORNBREAD

Simply follow the instructions on the back of the boxes, but mix it all together in one big bowl. I combined 4 boxes of Jiffy Corn Muffin mix with 1 yellow cake mix.  The temperature settings and length of cooking time varied (one said 350 for 17-22 minutes, one said 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes) so I chose the lower temperature and the lower cooking time.  When the 15 minutes was up, I checked the muffins and determined if they needed another minute or two. 

With combining all the mixes, this batch made 4 dozen muffins plus 1 dozen of the mini muffins. 

CINNAMON HONEY BUTTER

Cream together the following ingredients:

1 pound of butter (room temp)

1/4 cup of honey

1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp of vanilla extract

You can then spoon the mixture into a bowl or place it on parchment paper to form a "log."

That's it! 

(I found the recipe for honey butter years ago on the Internet.  

Unfortunately I do not know exactly to whom to give credit.)

Christmas Card Wreath

How do you like to display your Christmas cards?

Here is some inspiration from around the web:

Garland attached to a mirror via Martha Stewart

Tree via Martha Stewart

Shutters

Christmas Tree by Home Life

There are so many creative ideas these days.  I simply use painters tape to stick them to the wall in the shape of a wreath and add a bow.   It is simple and fast.

Watercolor Garland

I found a music book at a local antique store for $1.   

I then had to convince myself that it would be ok to tear apart a book that was over 100 years old. 

Next, I painted the pages to add color and character.

My boys (7 & 3) wanted to join in the fun, and they created these masterpieces. :)

Once the paper was dry, I cut the painted paper into random leaf shapes and used a glue gun to attach the leaves together. 

I love the color it adds to my kid's art work display frame. 

"Reindeer" by my 7 year old.

Linked up with:

The Ivy Cottage Blog: Cowgirl Up Link Party

Update Your Planters For Winter

Most of the spring, summer and fall my containers were filled with colorful flowers. 

But today they looked like this.  Not very lovely at all. 

I decided to clip a few branches from my trees and hunt for some pine cones with my kids. 

After removing the dead petunias, I layered branches and pine cones for a MUCH better look! 

A quick and easy outside update.

Christmas Carol Napkin Rings {Printable}

Simple, beautiful and cheap inexpensive napkin rings for your Christmas table. 

My "use what you have" themed table. 

Vintage linens from Grandma are adorned with a Christmas carol napkin ring and a sprig of rosemary. I borrowed chargers from my mom.  A Coco-cola crate is filled with clippings from the yard, pine cones and ornaments.

Choose from "vintage" or "teal."

Click on an image below to enlarge then right-click to save to your computer ("control" & mouse click on a Mac) and print on white card stock!   

Simply cut and staple, tape or glue ends together.  

For personal use only.

Merry CHRISTmas!

Linked up to Shanti-2-Chic Christmas Craft Linky Party and

 Homestead Revival's The Great Holiday Barnhop!

Deer Silhouette Paper Craft

One of my reasons for this blog is to motivate myself to create a lovely home.  My walls are a little bare and I am slowly remedying that.  

Today I wanted to create something for my entry wall.  It was a "use what you have" kind of day...partly because I am trying to be more intentional with the things I have in my home...but mostly because our craft store is closed on Sunday up here on the mountain. Not gonna lie, I didn't think I had anything "good" in my craft supplies, but I was determined to give it a try anyway. 

I just love the mixed media work by artist Dolan Geiman.  He's very talented and creates splendid works of art out of found items and scraps of wood.  So I give credit to him for the inspiration for this super easy, quick craft. 

I first cut out an image of a deer head on my Silhouette on 12" card stock and selected scrapbook paper from a very old stash of supplies from when my first born son (now 7) was born. 

I made strips by gently ripping the paper by hand. 

 I then layered the strips of ripped paper.

 I tested the deer silhouette before securely taping everything together.

I used a white frame that I had lying around in my craft room.  I placed the glass from the frame on my deer to position him correctly then traced around the glass. A few cuts and a few pieces of tape and the project was complete. 

I love the way it turned out and it didn't cost me a penny! Now I just need to complete a few more projects for my entry wall and hang the arrangement. 

O come let us adore Him! {Printable} Color Versions

I love the look of the black and white version you can find here, but I thought it might look just as lovely in color.  Hopefully there is a choice that will work well with your Christmas decor.

Click on the image to enlarge then right-click to save to your computer ("control" & mouse click on a Mac) and print!   

For personal use only.

Merry CHRISTmas!

Find the beautiful "Contribute" font here: