MY 15 FAVORITES- HOLIDAY WISH LIST

Today we've bumped our monthly series a up few days early, and it's super sized!  Welcome to My *15* Favorites today!  Pam from Simple Details, Lisa from Shine Your Light, Kris from Driven by Decor and I are all so excited to share our holiday wish lists with you today.  We had so many good things we couldn't stop at just 5!

We're also so happy to welcome Courtney from A Thoughtful Place as our guest host today.  Courtney can do it all... she's the perfect hostess, does gorgeous fashion posts as well as home, and she and her family have recently moved into a new-to-them home where they made quick work of updating it beautifully to suit their family.  Her "Home Sweet Home" tree that she decorated this year was so creative, and I thought this was such a smart idea for busy on the go families, too!  I was privileged to meet Courtney in person a few years ago and she's even sweeter in real life than she seems on her blog.  Be sure to stop buy and get to know her today!

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HOW TO MAKE A STYROFOAM RING SNOWMAN AND CHURCH CHRISTMAS BANQUET TABLE DECORATIONS

Hey friends!  I hope you all had a nice holiday weekend.  Did you get all of your Christmas shopping done?  In store or online?  I actually didn't do too much shopping, I was too busy decorating for Christmas and watching the new Gilmore Girls! (What did you think?  As much as I love GG I gave it about a 7 out of 10... but it was so good to see everyone back together again!)  I plan to wrap up my decorating in the next few days and then I need to get on those Christmas lists!

I help coordinate the decorations for the ladies events at our church, and we're usually trying to decorate a LOT of tables on a tiny budget.  So, I always like to share what we come up with because I know some of you might need event decoration ideas too!

A few weeks ago we had our Christmas event, and I had the challenge of coming up with decor for around 60 tables for $100 or less.  We wanted to keep things simple yet festive, and were only decorating tables in our Fellowship Hall where people would be eating before they moved into the auditorium for the program.

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HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I hope you all have a blessed holiday, and are able to celebrate with friends and loved ones.  I'm thankful for each and every one of you, and am thrilled that we get to share this little corner of the internet together!

"Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving,

let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.

For the Lord is a great God

and a great King above all gods."

Psalm 95:2-3 (NASB)

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DIY 30 MINUTE NO SEW TREE SKIRT

When I decided to use a new color scheme for my Christmas tree this year, I knew I was going to have to find a different tree skirt than I've used in the past.  Not finding what I had in mind in stores, I browsed Pinterest for inspiration to make my own.  As soon I I spotted this skirt  (no longer available to purchase) I knew I found a winner, and even more so when I knew it could be done quickly and with no sewing involved!

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COLORFUL SNOWMAN CHRISTMAS TABLESCAPE

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Hobby Lobby. The opinions and text are all mine.

I am thrilled today to have been challenged to create a Christmas tablescape with products from one of my favorite stores- Hobby Lobby- and to do it for less than $100 (it's a cinch with their great sales!). You all know that I love putting tables together staying true to my colorful style and keeping everything simple. Even if there are a lot of layers and parts, nothing is difficult and is usually easy to replicate with what you might have on hand.

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BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS STYLEMAKER EVENT

Several weeks ago I attended the Better Homes and Gardens Stylemaker Event held in New York City.  This is an annual event that 75 home and food bloggers along with other creatives are invited to attend.   I thought I'd take you through the event and give you a little peek into our time spent with the BHG team.  The BHG team did a phenomenal job of taking care of and even spoiling us for the day!

All images courtesy David Keith Photography unless otherwise noted underneath the photo.

The event was held at the stunning Gramercy Park hotel.  The design was absolutely exquisite.  I couldn't take it all in...

photo via Gramercy Park Hotel

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OUR FAMILY'S FAVORITE... PECAN PIE RECIPE

Alright, ladies (and gentlemen?)... one week and counting!  Today I'm sharing a staple of our Thanksgiving (and Christmas, and Easter, and sometimes weeknight dinners) menu, my Mom's pecan pie!

This is such a basic recipe, I like this one because the filling isn't custard-y or buttery like some.  I like to reduce the sugar just a little bit from the original recipe too, because I prefer it not quite as sweet.

Pecan Pie

3 eggs (beaten)

1 cup sugar (I cut back to 3/4 cup)

1 cup white Karo syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla

pecans

prepared pie crust

I've shared this before, but I have no problem using a pre-made pie crust (I like Pet-Ritz deep dish frozen the best).  If you're sneaky, you can even transfer the crust from the aluminum pie tin to one of your prettier pie plates, and no one will be the wiser!  Another trick is to thaw a bit and re-crimp the edges from the pre-made way they come so the crust looks like you have worked it by hand.  

To assemble, mix the eggs, white syrup, vanilla, and sugar well and pour into thawed pie crust.  I like to take a few extra minutes and arrange the pecans in a pretty pattern on top, but if you're in a hurry you can just sprinkle them to cover the top, or you can lightly chop them and spread over the top if you want smaller pieces.

Bake for 1 hour 10 minutes at 325 degrees, or 1 1/2 hour at 300 degrees.  Let it cool completely, the pie needs to set up for a while after it's removed from the oven.  Serve at room temperature with whipped cream if desired.  I actually like it best cold out of the fridge!

Thanksgiving Tablescape

The top gets a little candied, and the filling is just a bit gooey.  Yum, it's a crowd favorite at our house!

What's the staple at your family's holiday dinners?  Are you a pie maker?  Happy (early) Thanksgiving, friends!

If you missed it, be sure to check out my post from earlier this month... My Five Favorite recipes for the holidays.  The punch would be especially good for entertaining next week!


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JEWEL TONE CHRISTMAS TREE DECORATIONS

'Tis the season! As I thought about what I wanted to do for my Christmas decor this year, I was ready to switch things up a bit.  Usually, I stick with traditional Christmas red and green, and I've even done a more neutral metallics color scheme.  This gorgeous tree that my sweet friend worked on last year has been stuck in my head for months, and I knew that using jewel tone Christmas decorations this year was the direction I wanted to go.   There are a lot of colors there that I haven't used before, so I needed to stock up on some new ornaments and decorations.  At Home Stores has a huge seasonal selection, ranging from trees and floral to outdoor displays to ornaments to decorative accessories to gift wrap.

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SWEET SATURDAY #8

If you happened to miss the One Room Challenge reveals, you've missed Christmas morning of the home blogging world!  Check out the twenty featured designers' rooms here, and browse hundreds of guest participants here.  Lots of great ideas in a huge variety of rooms if you're looking for new ideas for a makeover.

My friend Gwen of The Makerista delivered her beautiful baby girl in between weeks 5 and 6 of the challenge- I teased her that she had the baby a little early just so she could include her darling new accessory in the room reveal shoot!  ;)

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HOW TO ARRANGE FLOWERS LIKE A PRO (TIPS FOR MAKING GORGEOUS ARRANGEMENTS)

In my last post about Restore House, I mentioned a retreat that I attended last month.  Other than hearing from the Parkers about their passion of restoring houses and running their store and event center, we also spent some time learning from darling sisters who run their own florist shop, called The Wild Mother.

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A TOUR OF RESTORE HOUSE- BROKEN ARROW, OK

A few weeks ago we were in Tulsa, OK for one of my son's band contests.  During a break we drove over to Broken Arrow, which is a suburb of Tulsa.  We lived there for two years while serving on staff at First Baptist Church, and our oldest son was born during that time.  Broken Arrow's downtown has experienced a beautiful rebirth.  When we lived there it was nothing special, but now it's a thriving quaint and charming Main Street.

I know that many of you that read today will never be anywhere near Oklahoma, but I wanted to encourage those of you who might be within driving distance to consider a day trip to the area.  This would be such a fun girls' trip if you're only a few hours away!  However, even if you'll never visit, I know you'll get lots of inspiration and ideas from the photos today.

I visited Broken Arrow with my daughter earlier this summer, but this time wanted to bring Ray along so we could enjoy lunch and stroll through some of the shops. However, my main objective was to come see and shop at Restore House.

I just became aware of Restore House last month at our state's Minister's Wives retreat, where owners Nick and Jamie Parker shared their story.  They are a darling couple raising five children, and their passion is to take houses in need of restoration and return them to their former glory.

photo via Born Again Restored

A number of years ago, they purchased this Victorian house on Main Street that was in danger of being condemned, and lovingly restored it to the beauty she is today.  Then, their family of 7 lived there for a period of time.

When the house didn't meet their family's needs any longer, Jamie realized her dream of owning a shop for unique and "found" items and Restore House was born.

The house remains mostly as it did when the family occupied it, only now it's packed full of pretty vignettes and fun things to purchase.  Many of the original furnishings and details remain inside the house.

Understandably, the kitchen was a huge renovation project, yet now it seems like this is how it should have always been!  Isn't it adorable?

I have more to show and tell you, please click over to read the rest of this post!

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BLOGGER STYLIN' HOME TOURS THANKSGIVING TABLE 2016

It's time for another round of Blogger Stylin' Home Tours, and I'm so happy to be helping kick off the Thanksgiving Table tours today! Fall is my favorite time of year, and it's always a joy to prepare for the season.  As always, many thanks to Lindsay at The White Buffalo Styling Co.  for putting this tour together.  If you're coming from her blog, welcome, and I'm so glad you're here!  I always love seeing what gorgeous eye candy Lindsay has for us, and she definitely didn't disappoint this time with that stunning candlelight table!

We have had such a mild Fall (still more like summer) that I jumped at the chance to set up my outdoor table.  We finished a patio makeover in the Spring, and are truly enjoying the outdoor living space that it provides.

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SWEET SATURDAY #7

This gorgeous white and gold kitchen makeover is breathtaking.  Don't you wish your coffee was brewing on that luscious marble counter right about now?

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MY FIVE FAVORITES: RECIPES FOR THE HOLIDAYS

Hello friends, it's time for another round of My Five Favorites with Pam from Simple Details and Lisa from Shine Your Light.  Kris from Driven by Decor is hard at work finishing up her family room for the One Room Challenge, she'll be back with us next month.

Today we're sharing our favorite recipes for the holidays.  I focused on the recipes that are my go-to, tried and true winners to take to parties or to serve when hosting a gathering in our home.

We're so happy to welcome our guest Mary Ann from Classic Casual Home. She truly does have a classic, casual style that is evidenced in her home and the homes she works on for her clients.  I love how she helped one client freshen up her dining room and entry without spending a lot of money or replacing key pieces.  You must see the before and after, truly a remarkable transformation with not much more than paint and hard work!

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