Holly and Jon get a Christmas tree

This weekend we got our tree! I love love love this time of year and having a pretty tree all lit up is one of the best parts. We went to the tree farm we have gone to for the last 4 or 5 years.

 Blue skies. Gotta love Christmas time in California.

 First time as husband and wife!

We decided to not mess around this year and got a pre-cut one. 

I think once we have kiddos we will go back to cutting our own.

Trimmed!

In the dark

{lights in a jar in my family room}

I have so many things to photograph to put up on this blog, but I can't because it's so dark before and after work! I know, first world problems. One of the things I can't wait to show you is the most frustrating craft I have done in a long time. In other news, I finally caved and joined Pinterest. Come find me.

Holiday Pro Tip: Hard Apple Cider

Your friends will love you if you bring Crispin hard apple cider to their holiday party. This stuff does not mess around! Not too sweet at all and actually packs quite a punch. Plus, it gets you in the spirit and all that stuff. Even though it seems blogland needs no help in that department. Get a 22 oz at Whole Foods.

Our Thanksgiving

Are you sick of hearing about Thanksgiving? We move on so quickly from this holiday, me included. I am sitting here, listening to Christmas music and surrounded by gobs of Christmas decor. Thanksgiving was at my brother and sister in law's house this year.

I made Shutterbean's herbed ricotta brushetta. So amazing. Worth taking some Lactaid pills for.

Stuffed mushrooms and homemade rolls from my parents.

Adorable name napkin holders I got from Heart of Light.

SMART baby alert!

My nephew said "you're hurting it" while my brother was carving the turkey. Ha. Here he is in a "pilgrim hat" but kept calling it a witch hat. It was neither. :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanks

The older you get, the longer your list of 'what you're thankful for' becomes. I probably wasn't thankful for my health in years past, but after seeing two people my age diagnosed with cancer this year, it's at the top of my list. I joked on Twitter that this year I'm thankful I'm not planning a wedding (true true TRUE) but what I'm most thankful for is a 'who' not a 'what'. As I continue to navigate through life, the 'who' becomes very clear.

{friends}

 {family}

{newly acquired family}

{my love}

Wedding photos by Kate Harrison Photography.

Weekend Scenes

{potato stamp + homemade wrapping paper}

 

{Ree's jalapeno poppers}

{farmer's market blooms}

Happy short week!

Kitchen Essentials

We were lucky to receive some amazing gifts for our wedding that were on our registry and some are so great I need to share. Most of what we asked for was just nice versions of what we already had. We had lots of 70's-era hand me downs, things from garage sales, things from college and even a toaster that you had to press down 3 or 4 times before it worked. So while most of our gifts are just pretty updated versions, some have surprised us in the functional department. Take note.

The best baking sheets, ever. I am constantly roasting veggies in the oven, baking cookies, baking tofu, you name it, so my baking sheets get a ton of use. These are so easy to clean, high quality and dishwasher safe. I will buy these for all future bridal showers, etc., everyone needs them!

I think colanders are so cute, and I've had a few, but if they are colored, the paint chips off and frankly that scares me. These mesh colanders are the answer. They will never rust, they are really fine so you can rinse super small grains in here, and the base on them props them up so the stuff you are rinsing is never sitting in it's own water. Ok, are you still reading? Probably not...

I never knew I needed a garlic press and I think we put this on the registry as more of a novelty thing. (Oops) But it has turned into one of the items we use the most! And its amazing. I think it allows the oils or something to come out and makes the garlic smell better and improves my cooking. Never again will I chop garlic!

Not too much I can say about a cooling rack, but this is just sturdy and thick and doesn't slide all around the counter like some flimsy ones I had in the past. You know, it just sits there on the counter and cools those cookies, as it should, but somehow better.

How To: Make a Wreath

Making a wreath is easier than it looks! Here are my simple

instructions to make a homemade wreath for cheap. 

Step One: Look outside and find something growing out of control that 

could stand to lose some branches. For me, this is an olive tree in our backyard. 

Step Two: Chop off the prettiest and fullest branches. 

Step Three: Gather your other supplies you may need, depending on what type of foliage you're using. I ended up only using the lightweight wire and wire cutters, besides the wire hanger, which everyone will need. 

Step Four: Shape your wire hanger into a circle. This will be your base. And it comes with a handy hook!

Step Five: Lay out the branches on your circle and wrap wire around the ends. 

 Step Six: Repeat until you reach your desired thickness.

Voila!

What I Wore: PonchoTown

I bought my first poncho this weekend. I may have worn one as a kid, but I can't remember. It was so fun! Perfect for people who get hot and cold constantly, like me.

What do you think? Do you own a poncho? Mine is a cheapie one from Kohls, but I would love to own this one or this one, too.

Happy Friday!

Cheer up, Kiki, it's Friday!

I can't believe how fast this week went and here we are at another weekend. This year is almost over already, which is just insane. Here are some things I'm looking forward to this weekend:

-Making wreaths

-Baking chocolate chip cookies and actually letting 

the dough sit in the refrigerator over night

-Hopefully convincing Jon to come see Melancholia with me

-Blogger meet up and brunch with Sweet Nothings!