Decking the Halls...

With our bellies full of turkey we spent the weekend putting out all the Christmas decorations...the garlands, wreaths, outside lights, decorating the tree...it's all done! It feels nice to have it to enjoy for the whole month of December. It's hard to believe when we are packing all this away in January that Baby McClard may finally be here!! We're praying hard that our adoption journey is nearly over and the crazy days of life with a newborn will soon be upon us!!

Ice Skating...sort of...

I thought Ice Skating would a fun, frugal outing to kick off our Thanksgiving weekend. I had heard about these temporary outdoor rinks that were set up at some of our local shopping malls. Today was FREE skating day with a non-perishable food donation to the Raleigh Rescue Mission! We finished up school early and decided to check it out...

It looks like ice...but it is really thick sheets of PVC...it felt like ice and was just as slippery!! It was still lots of fun...

Easy Ornament Wreath

I've been seeing these in Blogland for a few days and thought it would be fun to make one with Em...they are super easy and the end result is gorgeous!!

Just start with a wire hanger and some old Christmas balls...bend your wire hanger into a circle and take 5 minutes to hot glue the tops onto your balls...trust me.. DO NOT skip this step!!
Then just start threading your balls onto the hanger, stacking them as you go...

Finally, twist the wires together, add a ribbon and you're done!!

Ancient Greece!

We've been studying Ancient Greece this week, in between fighting off some nasty colds and coughs...Thankfully, everyone is feeling better and we have been able to finish some fun projects. We learned about some of the ancient mythological gods and goddesses and made some puppets...Here is Medusa, Athena, Cyclops, and Perseus... Next, we learned about the story of the Trojan Horse and made a small cardboard version. I heard rumors about the lego people hiding away in these to attack the Polly Pockets!!

Finally, we gave some Greek cooking a try and made some Baklava!! Yummy!!

It's so nice to study all these amazing countries and then have an excuse to make one of their amazing recipes!! Making and eating baklava is some fun homework!!

Rainy Days = Projects!!

It's been raining for 3 straight days here thanks to remnants from Hurricane Ida. The rain has been a blessing as we have needed it, but we have not been out to play since Monday!! Of course being stuck inside, means more time for projects!

I made this monogram wall hanging for my red/music/play room. I had seen something similar in the Pottery Barn catalog for $ 49...silly Pottery Barn with your ridiculous prices..but Thank You for sending me your catalogs for free so I can copy your ideas and make them using...
$1 yard sale tabletops! Remember these 3 legged beauties we used to put the ruffled skirts on?!?! It was just the right size circle and Nathan got to take the legs down for future campfire!

The kids and I also made a "Thankful Tree." We just found a cool branch from the yard (in between the rainshowers), spray painted it and every member of our family needs to "decorate" it each day with something they are thankful for.

It bothers me how Thanksgiving seems to get pushed further under the carpet every year by Christmas. Of course we are all getting excited for Christmas, but we still need to take time and enjoy Thanksgiving and how blessed we are. We have so much to be thankful for!!

a table becomes a bench...

Just another project...picked this table up at a yard sale a few weeks ago for $1. It's been sitting in the garage for a few weeks while I pondered what to do with it?? Then I got the idea to turn it into a little bench! We can always use an extra spot for when company is over so people are not sitting on the floor. It got a coat of black spray paint, a 4" piece of foam for the seat, and some lovely toile material and it turns into a lovely little seat! FYI...do not go to the fabric store to purchase foam at ridiculous prices...got to Ollie's Bargain Outlet where you will get a huge piece (enough for a future project as well) for less than $10!

Packing Shoeboxes for OCC!!

We packed our shoeboxes today for Operation Christmas Child It's a tradition we look forward to every year. It's a wonderful ministry started by Samaritan's Purse where you fill a shoebox with small toys and personal hygiene items and they are shipped to children in poverty-stricken countries that will receive them along with the gospel message. If you haven't hear of this ministry before I encourage you to check out their website, find a drop off location in your area and fill a shoebox for a child in need. It may change their life forever!!

Freezer Cooking Day!!

I got this 18lb beauty a few months ago FREE with a rebate from one of our local grocery stores. I've been putting off cooking him since there was not much available freezer space... until I had a yard sale a few weeks ago and made enough $$ to buy this off of Craigslist!! Isn't it lovely...5 beautiful cubic feet and it's all mine!! I now officially know I am getting old when a deep freezer excites me!

Here are my partners in crime for the day. They had fun helping and we had a great assembly line going!

Two hours later we had 12 meals ready for the freezer, this time we'll save some for when our new little one is here and we would rather be holding and snuggling him or her than cooking dinner!