yarn wreath in 4 minutes

...and as gordon ramsey would say: yarn wreath: done!

...and all was calm...

the tree went up yesterday...i love it...i made the preps while the rest were at ridingschool...i laid on the couch watching the lights...



...and sally laid with me...



...we lit some candles...and slumbered a bit...



...then my family came home and decorated the tree into perfection...



...we lit sprarklers...



...and me and my husband laid on the couch just soaking everything in...and all was calm...

more december daily photos

fifth



seventh



eight



tenth



eleventh

i am so impressed with myself that i have kept up with this all these days! now i am so looking forward to the daily photos i will take while we are on vacation in Holland in a week! i can´t wait!

hehe that photo above gives you an idea of how i feel right now :) i am super stressed, but am really trying to get things done and check of my huge to do list. i can´t understand how things (read events, meeting´s, dr´s appointments etc) tend hoard up into one week! i am really trying to calm down and take the moments of peace and genuinelly rest. i hate feeling stressed and out of time and know that these situations tend to trigger my anxiety and depression. but i am going to fight that! i am so looking forward to our trip that is next week! me and my husband ♥ are going to our friend J in Rotterdam, Holland for a few days and it is going to be fantastic! in the stressed spirit that i have right now i wanted to list things that i do really love and enjoy about these season:

candles, the light that they give

the expectation of something to come

finished christmas gifts all wrapped up

scents of gingerbread, oranges and cinnamon

christmas projects and crafts

christmas music

stars and twinkling lights

oh, i can go on since i really do love christmas time, but i won´t because i have to get ready for a work christmas party tonight!

happy saturday!

i am happily enjoying some alone time at home today! i love being alone! i have been a little bit crafty and even made some baking :) i wrapped a few christmas presents and cleaned a bit. i am also preparing for a thrift sale tomorrow, washing clothes and clearing out bags i am offering. it will be fun times!

i wanted to share some new layouts today, so here you go!



listing 30 things i want to remember right now...



a lovey dovey one with my husband...



a page about what is typical for us...



life ain´t always happy, but in the big picture it sure is!



and a 30 list with lovely things right now.

ps. be sure to check out my christmas tumblr (link in the isdebar!) because i just added a bunch of new photos!

december daily and a manifesto

can you believe that i acctually won a blog giveaway! yay! stephanie howell had 2 spots in shimelles journal your christmas class to give away to her blog readers. i signed up since i have really been wanting to take the class. but i never thought that i acctually would win! i am so very happy! shimelle is such a generous person and has already shared so many cool downloads etc. with us! the first thing that she prompted us to do is a manifesto for the christmas journal we are about to make. i thought that i would share mine here.

i promise myself to take part of the journaling promts and make notes everyday. i will keep all my notes and take photos throughout the month of december. when the holidays are over and the peace has come over me i will make a journal/album with my material.

so far i have been a good photographer and taken my december daily.



first



second



third

i have just slipped them into the album and will be fiddleing with it this weekend, i hope. i also hope to finish up some other projects laying around and also do some baking.

a glorious day

when we woke up today the world was covered in frost. i could see that the sky was going to be clear and blue and somewhere the sun was making it´s way up. it made me smile. i even got a good look at the beautiful full moon. the air was so fresh, cold and crisp. the dogs loved it too, not the full moon clearly, but the weather :)







otherwise we spent the day working, playing, cuddleing and eating a very good lasanga :)

page shares

and i made a page about my desk and the way to many projects that are in progress right now!



this was an older challenge from scrap the music using the title: i like it like that a page about how i want certain things a certain way ;)



one of my "right now" pages. i love them! right now i:

read: agatha christie
eat: to much chocolate
drink: cola light
love: my husband
dislike: early mornings
watch: greys anatomy
wish: that the paycheck would last longer
feel: love
listen to: a peter james book
want: to have life like this always
plan: for christmas
think: about love and life




at our house a sick day is also a craft day :)



see, i did make a page with the journaling from here.



our oldest cat begun to be very bugged whenever our daughter came close a cuple of months ago and we have no idea why. but sometimes they come along lovely!

handmade christmas project: advent calenders

have you seen how many cool advent calenders there are out there this year? oh my! i have made a few for my daughter, but this year i decided to make one with a twist. from experience i know that all those small items i have put in the advent calender often get in the trash before new years :\ so, i made one with only 4 pockets, one for each sunday before christmas. as always super duper easy and you can make it in whatever style you want.





link



link



link



link

a lovely felt one.

i also printed this beauty :)

have a wonderful day!

thankful...

with all this thanksgiving glory flying around on blogs these days, i wanted to join in on the fun even though we technically don´t celebrate thanksgiving here. i am thankful you know:

for my husband, with whom i have a wonderful and passionate relationship.

for my darling daughter, even though she has come to an age where she has a very weird temper...

for our pets, even though they make me loose my mind sometimes.

for our house, even though it is one big renovation to happen.

for my job, which i love sooo much.

for the internet, it makes me feel so good to be able to connect with so many wonderful people.

for painkillers and healthcare, i still have pains from my kidney-adventure.

for photography, mine and others.

for my family, genetic and inlaw.

for my drivers licence, i do love to be able to just take the car and go!

for music, it sets the mood of the day, i think.

for crafts, they make me so very happy.

for freedom and human rights, period.

for the ability to feel pure happiness.

for sunshine.

for lovely trips that are in store soon!
...i have more but that´s it for now...i might make a page with this :)

totally random friday post

i am home today, my daughter is sick and i did a eswl treatment yesterday (they blew my kidneystone up) and i have had such a hell of a night last night and i am still recovering. we are having a still day lounging around doing stuff here and there. my daughter is so bored and i am out of ideas. she has been home all week with fever and a cold, so i understand the boredom!

i didn´t think i would jump on the december daily wagon this year, but what do you know, i did :) just like i did last year :) i have seen so many lovely examples on the world wide web and i made mine real simple as i did last year. i used page protectors that i cut up to make a minibook. 3 bookrings and cardboard covers. i hope that i can keep up with taking pictures and adding journaling too.





the other day i made this 2 minute gift for my neices and nephew. it is the simplest and fastest gift i have ever made. i had some tree trinkets and 2 sticker sheets. made 2 out of each and voila a memogame is born!



i have just printed our christmas cards that we are sending out this year. i made them all photo = photo + writing on photo = christmas joy! i cut them up and my very bored daughter put them all in their envelopes. i was a little afraid that my inks would fail on me, but the printer let me print them all!

my to do list is a mile lone but i think i will take this upcoming weekend to keep still and fully recover from this kidney thing! tomorrow my wonderful parents-in-law are coming and i think i will take my mil to the christmas market, shop something homemade and take some photos.

what are you up to?

handmade christmas project # 7

a crochetted washcloth and a soap scrub. such a simple gift for yourself or someone you love. the washcloths can be used as a dishcloth or for dusting also.

_

this etsy shop is where i got the inspiration for this project.

sharing inspiration

1. Simplicity is the path, not just the destination:

Simplicity, many people think,
is an end in itself
But they're getting it backwards
Simplicity is the path, the means
It's not a far off destination,
somewhere in the future
It's right here, right now
It's taking things one at a time
It's asking simple questions
It's taking simple actions
It's doing it slowly
It's considering and being conscious,
with everything

When you find yourself becoming overwhelmed
on the path to simplicity
Taking a complicated, frenzied path
to get there
Stop, consider, and choose
the simpler path
And take it slowly
And easily
And lovely

found at knitandpurlgrrl.blogs.com

2. elizabeths new class: inspiration defined looks like so much fun!



3. these baby shoes and its diy pattern!



4. lovely free prints :)

5. the blog 5 things has a lovely concept of doing posts in lists of 5. an easy way to blog.

6. fry+design is a lovely blog with interior design and other nice inspiration.



7. the tumblr blog "quote book" is a nice source of good quotes.

8. have you seen the nice package blog? i love everything about it!



9. “I am still determined to be cheerful and happy, in whatever situation I may be; for I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances.”
- Martha Washington”

10. flip through the ikea family magazine :)

my beautiful morning

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