Christmas 2009 - Home Tour...

The decorating is done and now it's time to sit back and enjoy it.

Welcome to our home...all dressed up for Christmas!

The view of our entry, and what you see when you walk through the front door...

A few Christmas ornaments and some matching ribbon was all it took to turn our everyday entry mirror into something more festive.

We even have a little snow...

The lighted wreath on our bedroom door makes the entry glow at night...

Since each of the kids have their own bedroom this year, they each got a wreath on their door, personalized just for them.

William's favorite color is green...

Owen's favorite is blue...

And pink, of course, for Ellison...

I think this string of delicate, glittery snowflakes is so pretty. And perfect in her girly room...

The tree branches above our bed got a little *bling* for the holidays...

A major change this year, from years past...our Christmas tree is in our Family Room, instead of the Living Room where it normally appears in December.

This was Will's idea.
I was skeptical, at best.
Ok, honestly...I was not on board with the idea.
At all.

But he fought for what he wanted (got to respect someone who stands up for what they believe in!) and after weeks of debating about it through the month of November, I finally gave in, and the day after Thanksgiving we put the tree up in our Family Room.

So how do I feel about it now?

I LOVE it!

Will was totally right!

His reason for wanting the tree in this room was so that it would be right by the fireplace and next to the mantel that we hang our stockings on. I thought for sure that it would be too crowded and that it wouldn't work.

I am here to say...I was wrong.

(This will make him feel good!)

Will was right!

And I'm sure our tree will be in our family room every Christmas.

It is right off of our kitchen and the place that we spend most of our time, so really...it just makes sense to have it in here.

It's so cozy. Exactly how we want it to feel during the holidays!

For the mantel, I gathered lots of glass - vases, jars, urns...whatever I could fit together on the mantel. It didn't matter that they didn't match or didn't relate to each other. The red and silver ornaments are what create the look...

Our wool stockings were made by my mother-in-law. I love the colors and textures and the boys love that they are so BIG...

And one of our favorite items to hang by the stockings...

And, yes, it has two handwritten letters in it.

I love watching them write their letters to Santa!



This year, the tree was decorated by the kids.

I put some of our Christmas balls around the back and sides of the tree, but everything else was done by the kids. That's why all of the ornaments are hung in a column down the front...

You can almost see a straight line down the side of the tree where the ornaments end...

They were just so excited to get them all on!

I love how it looks.

It is perfectly imperfect.

And the best part is how proud of it they are.

To me, it is beautiful.

Crooked star on top, and all!

Thanks for touring our home!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everyone!

P.S. I am posting this at:

Holiday Linky Friday at The Inspired Room
Funky Junk Interiors for Christmas Trees Unite
Hooked On Holiday House Tours at Hooked On Houses
Home For The Holidays at Southern Hospitality
Christmas Tour Of Homes at Nesting Place
Thrifty Decor Chick for her Christmas Tree Party
Tip Junkie's Virtual Tour Of Homes
Between Naps On The Porch for Metamorphosis Monday
Holiday Highlights at The DIY Show Off
DIY Day at A Soft Place To Land

Winners Of The "5 Days Of Giveaway's" Party...

The time has come to announce the five winners from our

5 Days Of Giveaway's Party

to celebrate our 1st year of blogging here at

It's The Little Things...

So let's get right to it and not waste any time!

The winner of the

$40.00 Surprise Gift Package

from Bella's Bowtique is...

Rebecca

(and don't forget that there was a bonus with this giveaway - if you placed an order this past week, Rebecca, because you won the giveaway, your order amount will be fully refunded to you! So I have to know...did you?)

The winner of the

$50.00 Gift Certificate

from Leen The Graphics Queen is...

DesertNana

The winner of the

Kaleido R7 Digital Frame

from IPEVO is...

Jenn at Living The Simple Life

The winner of the

$30.00 Gift Certificate

from T's Etc. is...

MegJill

And last, but not least...

the winner of the

$150.00 Gift Certificate

to our Etsy Shop, Home Restyle,

to use towards the purchase of a custom built

Reproduction Antique Riddling Rack is...

Donna

Congratulations to all of our winners!

Please contact me with your email address and I will get you in touch with the giveaway sponsors to work out all of the details. Please email me at:

ItsTheLittleThings(at)HomeRestyle(dot)net

**all of our winners were chosen using Random.org**

To all of you who entered our giveaway's over the past 5 days...

we can't thank you enough for helping us celebrate our first year of blogging!

The turn out was great and that was all thanks to you.

You made our week!

And to those of you who added our "birthday button" to your side bars...you're the best!

Thanks for the love!

Today, December 12th, is officially our blogs 1st birthday.

But there is another birthday today.

A more important birthday.

Our William turns 8 years old today!

Let me guess what you're thinking...

"why would you start writing a home decor blog on your child's birthday?"

Am I right?

My answer:

I have no idea.

But I'm sure glad that I did!

It has been a fun and very productive year.

But a recap will have to wait.

Right now, I have birthday presents to wrap and

goodie bags to fill.

Thanks again for playing along with us this past week!

We'll have to do it again soon!

5 Days Of Giveaway's - Day #5: It's The Little Things...

It is the final day of our

5 Days Of Giveaway's Party

to celebrate our 1st birthday here at

It's The Little Things...

and we couldn't think of a better way to mark the occasion than by giving a little piece of ourselves, to you. As you know, we've always got a project going on around here, and at the core of it all, helping me turn my vision into a reality, is Will's time and effort, taking care of all the carpentry out in his shop. I couldn't make half of the things I do in our home happen without his support and carpentry skills.

But this time, instead of building something for me, he's going to build for you!

The giveaway gift for today is a

$150.00 Gift Certificate

to spend in our Etsy shop - Home Restyle - where we sell our

Reproduction Antique Riddling Racks

I discovered Riddling Racks earlier this year and immediately knew that it was exactly the kind of "wow factor" I was looking for in our (then) dining room.

But the price of genuine Antique Riddling Racks stopped me in my tracks! The price tag of $650.00 (and up to well over $1000.00) plus tax and shipping, made even the thought of having one of our own, an impossibility.

Luckily, I have my own carpenter...

It took only a small amount of convincing to get Will on board with the idea, and by the next day (and tons of saw dust and wood shavings later), we had a brand new Riddling Rack. But...brand new was not what I was going for. I wanted old. Beat up, old. So that's what we did. After quite a bit of distressing, I applied several layers of finish to give the overall color tons of variation and depth, making it look aged and rustic.

It has been on display in our home ever since, and it is one of my favorite things we own. The best part - that it was handmade by Will. It no longer hangs in our dining room (that's now a bedroom), but I found the perfect spot for it in our

Master Bedroom.

Now, instead of holding wine bottles, it holds candle light.

Take a look at how we have used ours over the past 8 months and get a closer look at the details...

Our Reproduction Antique Riddling Racks hold 36 bottles of wine. They are just shy of 2' wide and just over 3' tall.

Head over to our Etsy shop - Home Restyle - to get all of the details.

Once again, this giveaway is our way of saying "Thank You" to all of you!

You make our online journaling more than just a place to collect our projects and inspiration.

You make this a truly, fun place to be!

Here is all you need to do to enter:

Leave us a comment telling us what you would do with a Reproduction Antique Riddling Rack of your own.

Would you keep it for yourself? Is it just the "wow factor" that you've been looking for?

Or would you give it away to a friend or loved one? Maybe as a gift to the "wine connoisseur" in your family? I must say, I would be thrilled to receive a Riddling Rack as a Christmas gift!

Want to enter a second time?

Blog about the giveaway and leave a separate comment with the link to your post.

How about a third?

If you are a follower of

It's The Little Things...

leave us another comment.

You deserve to add your name into the hat a third time!

This giveaway will be open to enter only on December 11th!

Just 24 hours to get your name entered in.

This giveaway, as well as the other four, will end at midnight on Friday (Dec. 11th).

The winners of all 5 Giveaway's will be announced on Saturday, December 12th...

our first birthday!

Good luck to you all!

I can't wait to see who wins this one!

P.S. Just in case you missed the past 4 days...

Click here for Monday's giveaway

Click here for Tuesday's giveaway

Click here for Wednesday's giveaway

Click here for Thursday's giveaway

5 Days Of Giveaway's - Day #4: T's ETC...

It's already day number 4 in our

5 Days Of Giveaway's Party

to celebrate our 1st birthday here at

It's The Little Things...

But you know what they say...

time flies when you're having fun!

Today's giveaway is sponsored by someone that is very near and dear to my heart.

Not only is she a friend of nearly 20 years, but she is the reason that It's The Little Things...came to be.

Yep, I owe it all to her! I don't think I even knew what blogging was when Teri began telling me that I should start writing a blog of my own, but she was relentless...(in a good way) and on December 12th, 2008, she got her way and I dove head first into something that I knew very little about. I wasn't sure if anyone other than Teri would be interested in reading about all of our projects around here, but she had all the confidence in the world in me, which more than made up for any that I was lacking, so I decided to give it a go.

I met Teri when we were in 7th grade, and while it doesn't seem possible that it was almost 20 years ago, it also feels like I can't remember a time when she wasn't a part of my life. She was one of my very best friends in high school and even though we lost touch for a while, letting life get in the way...college, moves across the country, marriage, babies...we recently reconnected and it feels like, for us, time stood still and nothing ever changed. When we're together, we may as well still be in high school, senior year...talking and laughing, laughing and talking!

What I didn't know back then was that Teri would go on to craft beautiful jewelry.

Jewelry that, today, I get to share with you.

And I couldn't be more excited about it!

Ready to take a look?

I'm going to start out with my very favorite piece of Teri's...

the Midnight Glamour Cuff

I have to tell you that I have seen all of these items in person, and they're gorgeous!

A few weeks ago I went to the annual Holiday Bazaar that is held at our local middle school every November. Teri's jewelry was on display and at my fingertips and it took every bit of strength in me to not buy that gorgeous, sparkly, black bracelet all for myself!

But I was there to shop for a birthday present...not for myself, so I resisted. Somehow.

This next necklace is just like the one I bought (at the bazaar) for my best friend. I gave it to her the morning of her birthday as we chatted over coffee. Of course, she put it on right away, and after we had given hugs and said "goodbye" she called me to let me know that while she was out shopping she had been stopped twice in ten minutes, by women wanting to know where she got her necklace from!

Needless to say, we were both thrilled!

Isn't it pretty...

I have one, just like this next bracelet, in a coppery-brown color and it is one of my favorite pieces of jewelry to wear...

I would gladly take one of, oh......everything from Teri's Etsy shop!

Here are a few more pieces and just a small sampling of what you will find when you visit

T's ETC...

**The Lacey and Glamour Cuffs can be custom made in any size and color, so if you don't see what you are looking for, feel free to contact Teri through Etsy, and she will help you get what you need.**

Ready to hear what the giveaway winner will win?

Teri is offering you the chance to win a

$30.00 Gift Certificate

to T's ETC to spend any way that you see fit.

Need the perfect piece of jewelry to wear to the upcoming Christmas party?

Or maybe you're looking for something special to buy for the women in your life?

Chances are, Teri has just the thing!

All you have to do to enter is:

Visit T's ETC, then come back here and leave me a comment telling me which item is your favorite.

Now, if you'll let me, I'd like to ask you for a favor...

Teri just set up her Etsy shop. This is a brand new venture for her! I've been pushing her to start selling her jewelry on Etsy for a while now, just like she pushed me to start blogging. I would love nothing more than to see her shop become a huge success!

So do me a favor...show her some love!

Blog about the giveaway, Tweet about it, add it to your Facebook page, spread the word anyway that you can!

If you could do me that favor, I would be very appreciative!

Oh, and one more thing...

Teri has generously offered to give

FREE SHIPPING

on orders placed from Thursday, December 10th through Sunday, December 13th,

to anyone who is a follower of It's The Little Things...

All you have to do to qualify is to be a follower, or become a follower of our blog, and enter the code:

I'm A Follower

at the time of checkout on Etsy.

This giveaway will be open to enter from now (Dec. 10th) through midnight on Friday (Dec. 11th).

The winner will be announced on Saturday, December 12th...

our blogs first birthday!

Good Luck!

And happy shopping!

**Edited to add:

If you get the chance, check out the post that Teri did on her own blog about this giveaway!
There's a photo of us on the night of our Senior Prom!**

P.S. Just in case you missed the past three days...

Click here for Monday's giveaway

Click here for Tuesday's giveaway

Click here for Wednesday's giveaway

5 Days Of Giveaway's - Day #3: IPEVO...

We're at the halfway point in our

5 Days Of Giveaway's Party

to celebrate our blogs 1st birthday, here at

It's The Little Things...

Today's giveaway came to our attention quite some time ago. A company by the name of IPEVO contacted me to see if I would be interested in doing a review for them.

The product:

The Kaleido R7 Digital Frame

Now, I have to tell you, I am not a "techie" by any stretch of the imagination.

In fact, if I can, I have Will handle most of that around here.

But I'll admit, when I looked up the product I was going to review online, I was definitely excited to get my hands on it and see what it was all about.

I am so glad that I agreed to do the review. I am definitely impressed!

Here's what I liked most about it from the moment I got it out of the box...

the way it looks!

I am not at all a fan of digital photo frames. You know, the one's that sit in most houses these days. The one's you can get at Target, Macy's, even Costco...the one's that look like a real picture frame. It's not that I don't like how they perform...I just don't like how they look. When they're not in action and just sitting there with their empty, black screens...they look forgotten and lonely. I'm just not a fan of them for my home.

With the Kaleido R7, it doesn't look like a picture frame to begin with...it looks like a monitor. It's sleek and modern. And while we don't live in what would be considered a "modern" home at all, it somehow fit in perfectly.

We actually used it for Owen's 6th birthday party to display pictures of him growing up. It sat on the kitchen counter (the heart of our home) and it became the perfect way to show off our not-so-little, little boy throughout the past 6 years! The rest of the time, it got moved around to different spots, playing a constant visual rotation of baby pictures, homes we've lived in, and family and friends.

The ease of use is what stood out most for Will. Within minutes he had our pictures displayed - not just from our computer's photo albums, but also from our favorite photo sharing websites.

Ok, now for some technical info...

What can it do?

Built in wireless capability (no wires or data cards necessary) lets you stream photos from any website and news from RSS feeds. For instance, you could have it stream the latest headlines, the weather, the stock market...or better yet, all of your favorite design blogs!

It can also be a second display to your computer...

A high-resolution 7" LCD screen ensures that your photos are going to look their best!

The controls are laid out in the base so all of the functions are right at your finger tips...

But you don't need to stand in front of it to control it.

It has a handy little remote that lets you control the images from across the room...

The Kaleido R7 is extremely easy to use and well laid out.

The screen rotates to accommodate your photos and fit in with it's surroundings and the photos are automatically adjusted (thanks to a clever little sensor) when you change the orientation...

Will and I have been chatting about who could benefit most with a frame like this and, honestly, it's hard not to think everyone could benefit from it. Especially anyone that is in business for themselves or runs a business.

Real Estate Agents could use these at open houses to show off pictures of the home and the neighborhood in its best light.

And how great would this be for interior designers to have on display during consultations, showing off their portfolio's?

Same goes for photographers. What a great way to show off your work!

We could go on and on about who we think the Kaleido R7 would be perfect for...

for us, it was a great way to view pictures of us...our family...our memories.

Will and I were fully planning on keeping the Kaleido R7 for ourselves...

but in the spirit of Christmas, we would love to give it to one of you.

After all, it is always more fun to give, than to receive!

Consider it our way of saying "Thank You" to all of you - our reader's who come back post after post with kind and generous pats on the back by way of your comments.

We truly appreciate all of you!

But enough sappiness...

On to the giveaway details...

All you need to do to enter is leave a comment on this post.

That's it.

Really!

For those of you interested in checking out the Kaleido R7 and getting one for yourself, or maybe as a gift for a loved one, you're in luck!

Valued at $199.99

the Kaleido R7 is currently

on sale for $149.00

AND

if you order before December 16th you will qualify for

FREE SHIPPING

(and they'll have it to you by Christmas Eve - nice!)

AND

as a reader of It's The Little Things... you qualify for an additional $10.00 off at the time of check-out. All you have to do is enter the code:

IPEVOKR7

I'd say those are three pretty great reason's to do a little shopping!

Personally, I can't wait to see who wins this giveaway.

So start entering, already, and get this giveaway going!

This giveaway will be open to enter from now (Dec. 9th) through midnight on Friday (Dec. 11th).

The winner will be announced on Saturday, December 12th...

our first birthday here at It's The Little Things!

Good luck!

P.S. Just in case you missed the first two days...

Click here for Monday's giveaway

Click here for Tuesday's giveaway

Cranberry-Orange Bread...

This is one of my favorite things to make during the holiday season!

It's easy to make, my family loves it and it makes the house smell so good.

This is the bread that I made for the boys' teacher's to enjoy with their family during their Thanksgiving weekend.

If you get the chance, you should definitely try making it.

I bet you'll be hooked!



The recipe comes from

Betty Crocker's Best Of Baking

...a cookbook that was given to me by my Mom over 10 years ago.

It's a good one!

.....................................................................



Cranberry-Orange Bread


Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 & 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 tablespoon grated orange peel
3/4 cup orange juice
1 egg
1 cup fresh cranberries, chopped
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)



Directions

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottom only of loaf pan.
(8 & 1/2" x 4 & 1/2" x 2 & 1/2" or 9" x 5" x 3")

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda; stir in butter until mixture is crumbly. Stir in orange peel, orange juice and egg just until moistened; stir in cranberries and nuts. Spread in pan.

Bake 8" loaf for 1 hour and 15 minutes, 9" loaf for 55 to 65 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the pan. Loosen sides of bread from pan and remove to a wire rack. Cool completely before slicing.

**I always make a double batch so that I can get two loaves out of it. The way my family eats this up, it's always better to have two! But, at Christmas time, I like to have a second loaf to wrap up and give to the neighbors. So, if you choose to bake two loaves at a time, be sure to decrease your cooking time to 45 minutes.**



The recipe says that one loaf yield's 24 slices...

not in this house, Betty!

Enjoy!




P.S. I am posting this at:

Holiday Linky Friday at The Inspired Room

5 Days Of Giveaway's - Day #2: Leen The Graphics Queen...

Today's Giveaway in our

5 Days Of Giveaway's Party

comes courtesy of a familiar favorite...

Not only is Eileen of "Leen The Graphics Queen" a sponsor of

It's The Little Things...

but she has also done a giveaway with us before.

Around here, Eileen is a reader favorite!

Today Eileen is generously giving you the chance to win $50.00 to spend any way you please in her Etsy shop!

That means you can pick something to add to that spot in your home that has been missing something...

or you can do a little holiday shopping and make a loved one extremely happy!

Either way, it's a win-win for you!

Let's browse a bit, shall we?

Here's a little something to add to your Christmas decor...

This is a brand-spanking new design that Eileen just finished up this past weekend...

So pretty!

This is one of my favorites and always will be...

The options for what you could do with this frame are limitless...

Eileen also offers many quotes in her shop - inspirational, sentimental and endearing...

And the best part...Eileen has 42 different colors to choose from, which means that customizing your favorite decal to blend seamlessly with your decor, is no problem at all!

So what do you say?

Ready to enter?

Here's how...

Head over and visit Leen the Graphics Queen, then come back here and leave me a comment telling me which item is your favorite.

(I'm warning you...it will be hard to choose!)

Easy enough, right?

Want another chance at winning?

Blog about the giveaway, then come back here and let me know about it with an additional comment.

**Make sure that you leave two separate comments if you qualify to enter the giveaway twice.**

And that's it!

And just in case you don't want to wait to see who wins the giveaway and feel like doing some shopping now, Eileen is offering reader's of

It's The Little Things...

10% OFF

for any purchase made from now through Friday (Dec. 11th).

To get the discount just type:

It's The Little Things

in the message to seller at the time of checkout on Etsy.

This giveaway will be open to enter from now (Dec. 8th) through midnight on Friday (Dec. 11th).

The winner will be announced on Saturday, December 12th...

our first birthday here at It's The Little Things!

Good luck!

And happy shopping!

P.S. Click here to get all the details from Monday's giveaway!

My Semi-Homemade Christmas Wreath...

When I think of a "homemade" wreath, I think of something that was created using small bundles of greenery, sprigs of berries, floral wire and tape, and lots and lots of time - creating something from nothing.

Unfortunately, I don't have that kind of time or money.

So I set out to make a wreath for our front door that would cost me very little of both - a quick and inexpensive project that I would, hopefully, love just as much as a the kind of wreath that I would normally buy at Christmas time.

That was the goal, anyway!

I wanted it to be big and fat, super lush, and able to take up the entire width of our front door.

And I did it! Here's how I achieved it...

To start, I bought two faux pine wreaths at 50% off - one 36" and one 24". Both pretty scrawny on their own, I figured that if I set the small wreath inside the larger one I would be able to make it look as if it was one big wreath...

Each wreath has a thick wire frame to hold it's shape...

I just needed to tightly connect them and make it stable enough to hang...

In order to get the frames lined up correctly, I had to elevate the outer wreath, so I grabbed a few lengths of 2x4's to place only under the larger wreath. It made it just the right height and so much easier to work with...

Elevating the larger wreath created a "bowl" in the center that lined up the inner ring of the large wreath and the outer ring of the small wreath...

I used 20 gauge wire, which was definitely strong enough to hold the frames together...

But for extra strength (and peace of mind) I twisted the wire between the frames to make it more rigid...

The result looks like this...

I made sure that I kept the wreaths the same distance apart the whole way around, so that my finished wreath would look even...

Once the frames were connected, it looked like this...

There were plenty of holes in the wreath when I flipped it over to take a look at it...

...but I gave it a good fluffing and, as I had hoped, I was unable to tell that it had begun as two separate wreaths.


But the true test was to hang it on the door and see how it was going to look...

I liked it!

A lot!


On to decorating it.

Frosted berries on wired stems made it super easy to tuck them into the wreath and wrap the ends around the wreaths wire frame...

I added a red, satin ribbon to make it appear as if the wreath was hung by the ribbon, but I really have it hanging from a large suction cup hanger on the glass door...

I am not a bow kind of girl, when it comes to wreaths. But I wanted the ribbon to create a bit more interest than it would have had if I had just wrapped it flat around the wreath. I added the knot to see how it would look and I really like how it turned out...

How did I attach the ribbon to the glass door frame?

Duct tape, my friends!

No one can see it and it works like a charm!

I got green ornament hooks for this project because I wanted to use them to attach my ornaments without seeing any silver or gold (as you would from the typical hooks)...

I bought several tubes of shatter-proof ornaments for $1.00 each, sticking with the same colors that I have decorated with in our entryway...

...lime green and red...

Just a quick twist of the ornament hook and the color was placed on the wreath...

I love how it turned out!

But even more, I love how inexpensive and easy it was!

Everything for this project was purchased at the Dollar Store, with the exception of the two wreaths, which I got at JoAnne's for 50% off. The large wreath was $8.00 and the smaller wreath was $6.00. All told, I spent less than $20.00 on this project.

In the end I have a big, wide, colorful, pine wreath that fits in perfectly with my front door Christmas decor.

Don't get me wrong, I love a big, fresh, real pine wreath!

But I *think* I just might like this one better...

and at half the price of a real one, I know that Will likes it better!




P.S. Don't forget to enter today's Giveaway in our 5 Days Of Giveaway's Party!

Click here for all of the details!

P.S.S. I am posting this at:

Between Naps On The Porch for Metamorphosis Monday

Holiday Highlights at The DIY Show Off

It's So Very Creative at It's So Very Cheri

Make It For Monday at Cottage Instincts

DIY Day at A Soft Place To Land
DIY Ornament Party at Centsational Girl
Get Your Craft On at Today's Creative Blog
Show And Tell at Blue Cricket Design
Penny Pinching Party at TheThrifty Home
Works For Me Wednesday at We Are That Family

Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Chic Cottage
Thrifty Thursday at Tales From Bloggeritaville
Holiday Linky Friday at The Inspired Room

Frugalicious Friday at Finding Fabulous
Furniture Feature Friday at Mustard Seed Creations

Five Days Of Giveaway's - Day #1: Bella's Bowtique...

The time has come for the first giveaway in our

5 Days Of Giveaway's Party

to celebrate our 1st birthday here at

It's The Little Things...

Our first giveaway comes from Kristie at Bella's Bowtique

Kristie has generously offered to giveaway a gift package,

valued at $40.00.

For one lucky winner, Christmas will come early!

Why?

Because the giveaway gift is a surprise!

How fun is that?

And I promise, you're going to love it!

Kristie has assembled a gift package that is sure not to disappoint! You will receive new items, treasured favorites and even a one-of-a-kind design just for you.

Even if you don't have a little girl of your own, this gift package will make several great gifts for you to pass onto friends and loved one's.

Here is just a small peek at what is available from Kristie's adorable Etsy Shop...

Bella's Bowtique...

How cute is that tutu?

That's right...it's not just about hair accessories!

You'll have to take a look for yourself at all that is available from Bella's Bowtique. And now is the perfect time, not only to win this giveaway, but to browse and shop for Christmas gifts for all of the little princesses in your life. I personally know a certain 3 & 1/2 year old little princess that would love to receive any one of the items in Kristie's shop!

It's a girlie-girl haven!

But it's not just about the little one's. Kristie also makes gorgeous hair accessories for you and I. I had Kristie make me a beautiful flower for my hair to wear to my sister-in-laws wedding. I love it! And I can't wait to wear it again. But, instead of taking my word for it, head over and check it our for yourself. I dare you not to find something that you or your little princess would love!

Ready for all the ways to enter the giveaway?

Kristie is going all out and giving you as many chances as possible to win:

1. Visit Bella's Bowtique and come back here to leave a comment with your favorite item.

2. Blog about the giveaway.

3. Write about it on Facebook and/or Twitter.

4. Send an email to your friends and family letting them know about the giveaway and CC Kristie on the email at

BellasBow-tique(at)live(dot)com.

5. Place an order at Bella's Bowtique and leave a comment here with your Etsy ID name.

FYI:

Each and every entry will require you to leave a separate comment on this post.

So there you go.

Five chances to win!

Oh, and one more thing...

Reader's of It's The Little Things... who place an order between now (Monday, Dec. 7th) and Friday (Friday, Dec. 11th) will receive 15% off of their order of $25.00 or more (not including the cost of shipping) by typing the words

"Happy Birthday"

in their notes to the seller when they check out with their order on Etsy. The refund for 15% of the cost of the order will be refunded within 48 hours of receiving payment.

Don't forget...the words "Happy Birthday" must be entered at the time of purchase to qualify for the 15% discount.

There's a bonus too...

If you place an order between now (Dec. 7th) and Friday (Dec. 11th) and you are the one who wins the giveaway, not only will you be receiving the Gift Package that Kristie is making for you, but you will also get a FULL REFUND on your order amount!

Ok, seriously...that's good!

So what are you waiting for?

Start browsing!

This giveaway will be open to enter through midnight on Friday, December 11th.

The winner will be announced on Saturday, December 12th...

our first birthday!

Best of luck!

Sugared Pecans...

For those of you interested in our family's favorite recipe for Sugared Pecans, here it is:

(and to those of you who sent emails reminding me to post it...thank you!)

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter
2 egg whites
1 lb. of pecans
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon

................................................


Directions:

Melt butter and spread in a jelly roll pan (or cookie sheet). Mix all other ingredients together and spread in the pan making sure that the pecans are spread out flat. Bake at 25o degrees for one hour or until dry. Stir the pecans every 10 minutes during cooking so that the sugar mixture coats the pecans well. Be sure not to overcook them or they will taste burned. As soon as they look dry, remove from oven. Cool and store in an air tight container.

(unless you end up eating them that day...which we always do!)

...............................................


I like to take Sugared Pecans with me to holiday events. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's...they're the perfect holiday snack.

Be careful though...they're addictive!

Placed in a cellophane bag and tied with a beautiful ribbon, these would make a fantastic hostess gift or a gift for your neighbors to spread the holiday cheer!

Enjoy!




P.S. Many, many thanks to my friend Shana for sharing the recipe! These have become a family favorite and a tradition that we look forward to every year!