2014: Year In Review

I don't know about all of you, but New Year's Eve sure snuck up on us this time! When I first set out to create our 2014 year in review I thought to myself "man, this year was boring!" But after brainstorming with Adam, we were able to come up with quite a few things to throw in. 

I was a bridesmaid in my best friends wedding...

Adam came in first place in a golf outing....

and Lucy attended her first baseball game, Bark in the Park Night at Dow Diamond.

 We ran our first 10K together after training for what felt like forever...

And went to a home football game cheering on our Central Michigan Chippewas!

We finally got to ride a tandem bicycle around Mackinaw Island, something I've wanted to do for years...

And we spent Labor Day walking the Mackinaw Bridge!

To say this year was boring would be a lie. While we may not have had any big life changing events in 2014, we have done some pretty awesome things. It's been a year full of wonderful memories, and I can't wait to see what 2015 will bring (let's hope it involves me finally graduating)!!

Happy New Year from our family to yours!

Want to see reviews from previous years?

      

Top Posts of 2014

With the new year quickly approaching, I am happy to be sharing my Top 10 Posts in 2014!

Looking back on these posts, I can't help but notice how much this little blog of mine has grown since last year! I am so thankful for each and every one of you that has read my posts, followed along, and invited me to be apart of something bigger. I have made some wonderful friends and can only hope to continue to do so in the next year.

Here's The Best of 2014 Countdown:

10. Gold Glitter Ribbon Garland

9. Fabric Covered End of Summer Wreath

8. Puppy Popsicles

7. Crocheted Heart Coffee Cozy's

6. Vibrant Adirondack Chairs

5. Fabric Covered Bulletin Board

4. DIY Ruffled Curtains

3. Wood Plank Coffee Table

2. Home Office Reveal

1. Wedding Morning Playlist

Cheers to a wonderful year of blogging! Here's to hoping 2015 is just as fulfilling!

Scenes From Our Christmas Celebration

Once again, Christmas has come and gone in the blink of an eye. It was a very low key one for us this year, since Adam's work schedule made it almost impossible for us to travel. I can't really complain though, because we've always wanted to just stay home anyways. 

Since we opted out of traveling, we spent the holidays with my family. When Adam got out of work on Christmas Eve, we headed to church and then back to our house for dinner. My parents, brother, and sister joined us. We all drank too many Grinch drinks and played Qwirkle til late.

Although there are no kids in the family yet (everyone is waiting on me), my 23 year old sister still manages to wake us all up early Christmas morning for 7:30am gift opening. This year, we opened gifts at my parent's house, and since we slept at our own house, we got a 7am wake up call with Christmas music blaring into the phone. The rule is that everyone still must arrive in their pajamas. We arrived shortly after 7:30 for gift opening and a delicious Christmas brunch. We returned home to nap and get read for the day before heading back to my parent's for dinner. Once it got late, we went driving around looking at Christmas lights and then called it a night. 

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and was able to spend time with those they love over the holidays. We are so blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives. And lucky for us, we get to celebrate with the Muszynski family all over again in a few days :)

Burlap Christmas Wreath

It just wouldn't be right if I didn't show you the wreath I made this Christmas. I found some burlap ribbon at Hobby Lobby and fell in love. I decided to go with a forest green and accent with red chevron. I love the large bow hanging long. 

It just wouldn't be Christmas without a wreath on the front door!

DIY Christmas Stockings

When Adam and I first got our own place, we went with the cheapest everything when it came to Christmas decorations. We found stocking at Walmart for $5, and a matching tree skirt to go with it, so we thought we hit the jackpot.

Fast forward a few years and those ugly stockings had to go! I was determined to make my own stockings last year, but that never happened. So here I am this year with some new stockings I made myself, finally.

Since I made green and red chevron pillows and tree skirt last year, I decided to stay with the chevron theme. I already had the fabric, so this project cost me absolutely nothing.

First, I used our old stockings to trace. I found it easiest to fold the fabric so I could cut out both pieces at once. 

Next, I cut out the fabric for the stocking. Instead of cutting right on the line, I went out about a half an inch to leave room for the seam. This worked out perfectly when it cam time to sew because I could just follow the line I traced.

Next, I sewed the outside edge of the stocking "flap" so there would be a smooth edge. 

With all fabric facing down, I then lined up the flap and stocking to sew the edges together. When you do this, be sure the pieces of your stocking are facing outward so they are correct when you fold them.

With the flap fabric lifted up, fold the stocking so it is lined up and ready for sewing. Sew ONLY the stocking together, following your trace lines. DO NOT SEW THE FLAP. 

Once the stocking portion is sewn, turn the stocking right side out. The flap should now be inside out. Sew the side edges of the flap together.

Lastly, turn the stocking inside out one last time. Attach a piece of ribbon on the top of the stocking. Consider which way you want your stockings to hang when you do this. Then turn the stocking right side out again.

You just made your very own stocking! Woo Hoo!!

My first stocking took me quite a while to make. There were so many things to think about as far as how to sew it and in want order to be able to get the flap to fold down. Confession: I even threw a half completed stocking away because I messed up so bad. 

But once I figured out the process, I whipped up the next one in about 15 minutes.  

Happy Stocking Making!

Can you believe Christmas is just 8 days away?!