Six on Saturday

one

I had the hair-brained idea not to put up a Christmas tree this year. I'm not sure what was going on. Maybe I was worn out from the Thanksgiving hubbub; maybe I wasn't thrilled about having to lug that thing down from the attic and set it up. Either way, I loaned it to Camille this year, thinking it would save me some time and hassle. Turns out, I simply cannot have Christmas without a tree. I headed out the next day and bought one. The good thing that came out of it was discovering fresh garland at Lowe's. You can get 20 feet of cedar for $15, and let me tell you, that 20 feet goes a long way. I draped it down the hallway, on my mantel, on my table, and then made three really simple wreaths with the leftovers, one of which is pictured above. There is also a bit of dried boxwood in that one, which I'm crazy about, and some fake red berries. Next time I'll add red berries from the Pistache tree or Nandina.

two

I made this clay poinsettia! I'm in love with it. I have grand plans to make more, but that may not happen. I followed this tutorial from Sparkle Living, which was spot on, and I used the directions for baking clay on the package, which also was just about right. I just had to bake the clay a bit longer than it said. Also, (in case anyone is going to try this) it's good to know that the clay doesn't totally harden in the oven but will continue to harden as it cools.

three

I added a small living Christmas tree to our decor this year, purchased at Luis's Nursery. It's so cute. It was my first attempt at fixing the no-tree issue, but it wasn't large enough. We plan on keeping it in a pot throughout the year for as long as we can, and then we will be happy to pass this sweet cedar on to someone who will plant it, as we have no room.

four

I finished my first class for my program at UCLA Extension! Our final project was to create a website for our college counseling business (which for most of us is fake at this point). You can check it out here. And I really did learn a lot, both from my class and from working with my friend at her business, so if anyone has questions, ask me!

five

I am leading the children's Christmas program again at church. I have three fantastic women helping me this year, plus Debbie who makes snacks for us each week. It's so great being part of a team! We've been busy practicing and rehearsing, getting ready for our performance on December 14th. It's going to be great!

six

I've missed so much in this update, so #6 will be a summary.

• Unfolded Designs was at the Handmade Holiday at Radiant Church, and it was a fantastic event! We did really well! You can see some pictures on our Instagram (feed is up on the right). Nothing draws people like twinkle lights. :)
• Thanksgiving was great this year. Chels and Roger stayed with us for two nights, which is something that never happens and made the week feel extra special and fun. We celebrated with my family and Robby's family both in one day (that kinda kills me...), then kept up the fun throughout the weekend until Chels and Roger headed back to SF on Saturday.
• We've had some nice evenings with friends this month, one being a redeeming dinner at Bravo Farms with Ben and Steph. (The last time we went there was a bit of a disaster...) We also got to visit with John and Kelly who stayed the night with us. What a treat!
• Robby and I went to Disneyland and had a blast! It was the last week of our annual pass, so we made sure to get the most of it. As much as I loved our day, though, two Disneyland days in a row nearly killed me, as our trip came just days after the girls' trip. I felt like it took a whole week just to recover! But it was worth it.
• I wrote about Advent earlier in the week, but wanted to again say how wonderful it is to spend time in expectation for the celebration of Christ's birth. Did anyone else begin an Advent calendar?

Happy Saturday, friends!