Goodbye 2011

It was a great year. Full of surprises and wrapped in pink. Thank you for experiencing it with me! I thought it might be fun to take a look back ...

I started the year off embracing Pantone's new color - Honeysuckle (hot pink) and soon found out that they could not have made a better choice.

I left for a road trip in the middle of January and when I came back my daughter told me she was going to have one of these ... it was not long before we found out that pink was to be our color of the year too.

I used the softest pink in a precious client's new nursery ...

And a brighter pink in a room for a couple of darling little girls ... 

It was the color of fall ...

And even winter outside our house ...

I used it for wrapping ...

And it was just perfect for this precious little girl ...

But in design, I couldn't seem to get turquoise out of my mind ...

I used it everywhere ...

They seemed to go well together ... the old and the new ...

And that is what my daughter chose for her sweet daughter's nursery ...

We had the crib painted to match!

It turned out to be one of my busiest years ever. From small jobs ...

To large ...

Whether residential ...

Or commercial ...

My favorite part of every job was the people I worked with. 

I styled weddings ...

And showers ...

Bookcases ...

And walls ...

There were jobs that I finished in one day ...

And others that took many ...

And for all of them I am grateful. It was a wonderful year.

Thank you for coming along for the ride ... for your comments, and prayers and kind thoughts. For continuing to read what I write even when I am terrible about writing back. It was great getting to know you!

2012 ... here I we come!

Christmas is over

I've been a little awol this week ...

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My allergies have gotten the best of me.  But we had a lovely Christmas (although exhausting!). 

We started Christmas morning with a simple and casual breakfast (eggs, sausage, fried potatoes) ...

Our stockings were full - I made paper chains with things that I love about each family member (even the dog).

None of our stockings match and a few have many holes. I have thought about replacing them  but my kids won't let me and honestly I am okay with that. I like that they are sentimental about their stockings. I really love the stocking for our newest addition to our family.

{One Lucky Baby}

She thoroughly enjoyed her first Christmas. I sure hope someone else took good photos because I didn't!

We had a full house for a week which was wonderful but now everyone is gone ... and I have started the daunting task of packing up Christmas. Honestly, it shouldn't be daunting because I didn't use much of my Christmas decor this year but I am re-organizing all of it so that it is easier to find what I want next year.

I bought this system from The Container Store - I am hoping it will make next year's unpacking and packing easier. I love that I can see each ornament quickly, everything is uniform and I don't have to unwrap (and then re-wrap) tons of tissue paper to get to the ornaments (my old system). 

For more tips about packing away Christmas, check out my post from last year! Have you started putting your stuff away yet? Isn't it awful how bare your house looks at first?

The best gift

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And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

Luke 2:8-12 

{source & free image download}