A Bit of Fall Decor

Gosh, I've been so busy lately that it's already the middle of October and I'm just now starting to pull out fall decorations!

I love looking at others blogs and how they've decorated for the season. So here's a peek into mine. I decided not to go overboard on all the fall foliage this year and just make it pretty simple. Just a few touches of fall here and there......

Centerpiece on my kitchen table.

And finally a shot of the fireplace mantel.
{I'm loving the white pumpkins mixed with all the orange this year}

Pretty simple this year, but I really like it!

A&J

My favorite birthday gift to give and get

My all time favorite go to gift idea right now is cute Pj's and a good book.  I not only love giving this as a gift, But I also love when the girls get it as well.  Parent's appreciate this gift so much because it's not just another toy that's quickly put aside after 5 minutes of play.  What's more fun than to snuggle up in some cute pj's and read a good book together.  I've given this exact gift so many times.

One set of Fancy Nancy PJ's 

Paired with the Fancy Nancy Pajama Day book.....

And Voila!  The most fabulous (which is a fancy word for great) most appreciated birthday gift ever. Occasionally I've found a cute sleep mask or some cute fluffy slippers to throw in as well.

The best thing about this idea is that it is such a versitile idea.  For a recent boys gift I found How to Train Your Dragon Pj's and paired it with a How to Train Your dragon book. For this gift I had also found a wooden sword and shield set that I put with it.  Talk about one happy little boy!  He loved it. 

A&J

Gift Idea for the Busy Mom

I spend countless hours trying to find just the right gifts for friends and family.  I find great joy in giving the perfect gift.  Doesn't have to cost a ton, it just has to match the person's personality as well as their needs at the time.  I recently struggled with a gift for a very close friend of mine because I wanted it to be even more than perfect.  She's going through a lot just losing her mother and now is having to take care of her father who is very sick.  With two young girls of her own, she's basically keeping up two households. So, with all that said, I came up with this.

This adorable apron found here.

 a popular slow cooker cookbook found anywhere and everywhere.

and since another good friend went in with me, we also had the budget for an awesome crockpot as well so she could whip up tasty meals and leave at her dads. 

I had envisioned opening the box and putting the apron, and cookbook in it with a couple of wooden spoons, but timing wise, it just didn't work out.  The gift was a hit regardless. 

A&J

Halloween bottle labels

By popular demand, we are reposting this post.  Please post your creations so we can see too.  Happy Halloween all!!

It's officially the beginning of Fall today and that means that Halloween is just around the corner. Found these awesome bottle labels at Love Manor's flicker site. Wow, all the possibilities with these for a Halloween party!

Simply visit the flicker site to download the labels and print them out to make your table spread a little more spooky and interesting.

I'm envisioning the "Poison" on a bottle of green soda, the "Vampire Blood" on a bottle of red soda or juice, and lots of small glass jars with candy labeled with the

"deathly morsels" and "rotten sweets" etc.......

Don't you just love these?

A&J

Non-Scary Halloween Decor

It's that time of year again.  My challenge in decorating for Halloween is to make it the least scary I can make it.  Two little girls who don't sleep through the night in the first place, I certainly don't want to add anything that can give them more excuses to find their way into our bed.  Please don't judge. :)

Love these trees I found last year at HL.  Added the cute little animal print spider I found at Pier One.

Cute scarecrow family of 4.

A friend emailed me a Halloween mantel and I just had to steal the hanging spider idea.  Too cute!

This one is subject to much discussions with our 3 year old.  She's very upset that this witch could be smashed under the couch.  We may have to put this one away and try again next year.

Love these cute Halloween balls I found at I think Marshalls.  Still trying to find some other fun things to add to all the other glass jars that are not candy related.  More to come on that later.

Last but certainly not least.  Our beloved Charlotte makes another appearance this year.  Adorned with of course a cute Halloween bow.

Happy Halloween!!

A&J