life – Page 5

Real Food Challenge – Week Two

For 14 weeks, the family and I are undertaking a Real Food Challenge (put forth by the awesome 100 Days of Real Food blog). I’m hoping to check in about any struggles and successes along the way each week. Our ultimate goal is to cut down on our dependence on processed foods and start using some cleaner fuels to energize our bodies.

So, here’s how it works. I’ll get an email every Thursday for the next 14 weeks (the actual eating challenge will start on Sunday or Monday for 7 days, so there are a couple of days of prep built in). Each email outlines the “rules” for that particular week. It’s up to each participant as to whether or not they’d like to try each week independently or build on top of the prior week. In other words, continuing doing the prior weeks while attempting the new weeks, if that makes sense. There’s also a very active Facebook group (I’ve actually joined an offshoot that’s super supportive and far more focused) that’s there to share, answer and support.

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Review of Week #1: We officially started on Monday (through this Sunday, although we’re going to attempt to keep up the increase in fruit ‘n veg), which also happened to be the first day for all of us to return to work. Thanks to some prepping over the weekend, some mornings and evenings (like making some ranch dressing for dipping and chopping veggies for snacking and tossing into meals) it was simpler than it would have been otherwise.

I loved having my meal plan, which you can see in my Week One post, jotted down on our white board, although I ended up switching out a couple of alternatives, like chicken fajitas (filled with veggies and with a sweet potato on the side) instead of a quesadilla…which isn’t really a huge change. But, yeah, I love having the structure and a quick choice for meal planning rather than that daily “what are we going to eat today?” feeling, as well as the slight flexibility of being able to switch out an equally healthy alternative. Ahhh. Yup, I’d say that’s the trick here.

The challenges this week? Well, all that prepping did take up more time, and we were generally exhausted trying to get back into a routine (and still are), but we’re handling it all just fine. Also, although Hadley’s not usually a very picky eater, he didn’t eat a few of our meals. That mixed with some teething (molar!!!) meant that I got pretty creative and had to have a conversation with myself about whether or not he HAD to have the same dinner as us every night. My answer? No. And it’s not a big deal. (I usually subscribe to the “I’m not a short order cook!” concept.)

Gonna keep working on this as we move forward, particularly finding meals that he WILL eat (along with us) that can become staples. Fingers crossed!

This week is all about beverages. Namely, limiting them to coffee, tea, water and milk (and sweetened only with a bit of honey or 100% real maple syrup). I’d like to say this is an easy one – it is, really – but Hadley’s a juice drinker. Plus, I can’t completely control what he’s given, aside from the meals I send, throughout work days. Also, I’m a sugar-user in my coffee and tea, so I’ll either be going without (not a huge deal) or trying a new method this week. {I tend to hate honey, not sure why. We’ll see how it goes.}

Oh, and since one serving of juice is allowed during the week, I’m not sweating Hadley’s intake. He’s only supposed to consume one sippy cup of it daily (and that’s watered halfway), so I’m not sweating it. I’d like to get him on to mostly water one day, anyway, and he also drinks milk, but at his age, I’m not concerned.Otherwise, since this week is so simple, I’m going to try to build it on top of the “eat more veggies” thing. If I look at the day as “eat at least six fruits and vegetables, total” it’s not that bad. I’ve always brought an apple for lunch, so if I bring along carrots to munch or celery and hummus for an additional snack or add-on to lunch, I’ll be good. It definitely helps me to think about cleaner breakfasts than just, like, toast. 😉

Here’s my food plan for the upcoming week:

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{WW = Whole Wheat}

Can’t wait to make our veggie pizza tonight! Is anyone else making some healthier choices lately? 🙂 Let me know in the comments!

In Defense of Daniel

No matter what boundaries we parents swore we’d set (or still attempt to enforce), kids do an awful lot of TV watching. So, as parents to toddlers, we also ingest a ton of the stuff. Some of it’s awesome. Some of it’s pointless. Some of it’s downright stupid. Then, there’s “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood”.

There seems to be a clearly-drawn line between parents who hate-hate-hate “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” and those who truly love it. I’ve seen fights erupt online (I’m not kidding) over whether the songs are the “most annoying things EVER” or if they’re useful tools to help our children learn, grow and understand how to deal with life’s little challenges. I’m usually put at ease, at least, by the fact that everyone agrees that we all miss Mr. Rogers, himself and the original show.

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Image courtesy of PBS Kids

For those of you who don’t have little ones in your house (and presumably don’t have the opportunity to partake in the PBS Kids’ fare), “Daniel” is a cartoon-based show that loosely utilizes some of the Neighborhood of Make-Believe characters from “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood” to teach the new generation a plethora of positive life lessons. Daniel, himself, is actually the son of Daniel Striped Tiger (the original adorable puppet character) and is about pre-K aged. His friends are the children of other known characters – O the Owl (lives with his uncle, X), Katerina Pussycat (Henrietta’s daughter), Miss Elaina (the daughter of Music Man Stan and Lady Elaine Fairchilde), and Prince Wednesday (whose old brother is Prince Tuesday, and parents are King Friday and Queen Sara).

The story lines are simple but incredibly realistic. So many of the topics – potty time, feeling left out, a new sibling, bath time, and many more – are ones that I either see firsthand with our own son or have seen over the years with my younger students.

As a passionate fan of Mr. Rogers (the man AND the show), I was immediately skeptical a couple years back when Dave happened upon that familiar trolley sound, accompanied by unfamiliar cartoon characters. The questions arose: “Wait, are those the same characters from the Neighborhood of Make-Believe, or…they’re their kids. Lady Elaine’s not a b**** anymore? Get out!” and “What would Fred think?” and “There’s something way too basic yet not at all pandering about this…” So. Many. Questions.

But, after awhile, the questions died down and we all found ourselves truly enjoying the thing. Yes, most of the songs are definite earworms that we find ourselves humming while doing dishes, but that’s the charm. They’re so simple yet so memorable that they fit perfectly into our lives, good for calming down both child and parent when an emotionally-charged moment could be turning out badly. And the GET kids. Like, really GET them. (One reason we’ve finally, after a long-felt annoyance over Caillou, given in. We like it because it’s exactly the stuff a young child goes through, said the exact way a child would.)

Plus, the show is actually produced by the Fred Rogers Company (which is also partly responsible for “Peg + Cat”, which we LOVE; that one’s just as enjoyable for the parents, if not more so). Not only is it funding the project, but it’s letting viewers know that, yes, Fred Rogers would appreciate this and encourage its use. If we can’t have Fred, Daniel’s the next best thing.

In fact, I like to think that Daniel’s “neighborhood” is actually an actualization of the world Mr. Rogers hoped to create. The kids on the show (be they animal or otherwise) are the next generation to reap the benefits of those raised on his ideals of love, acceptance, specialness and patience (among others); just as we were raised with these warm thoughts, we can pass them on through Daniel (as well as through the innate lessons we learned from him). The fact that every adult seems to universally know the exact same song for potty use may seem ridiculous to us as adults, but in fact it’s showing an environment filled with adults who all completely love, support and nurture the children in the neighborhood, giving them the ultimate sense of security. It’s idealistic, but if one can’t have some ideals, one can’t have a future worth looking forward to.

So, sure. We’re Daniel fans. We love that he’s still young enough to have his insecure, need-your-parents moments yet gaining his independence in leaps and bounds. We love that Miss Elaina wears backwards clothes and is boisterous. We love that O the Owl is highly literal and far more into books than playing pretend. We even love the ridiculousness that Prince Wednesday’s brother, although an heir to the throne, works as a babysitter and waiter. It’s all good.

And we’re sure that Hadley’s gaining from that good, in turn.

Purge Plans

We just took down about 95% of our Christmas decorations and said a sad goodbye to our gorgeous tree. (I’m too attached to my “wow, I did that?!” chalkboard sketch, seen on my decor breakdown, so until I’m inspired or totally done with it, it’s staying!) Paired with heading back to school today (after a super generous two weeks off with the family…I know, I’m spoiled), and I’m definitely feeling the post-holiday letdown. Who else gets hit by this every year?

Sure enough, though, this time of year also gives me a bit of a lift. I suddenly feel motivated to undertake some purging, decluttering and organizing when January hits. Nothing to do with resolutions, but maybe something about the freshness of a new year and the boredom (if it can be called that) of winter.

Add to it the fact that we’re hoping to find a new home in 2015 and what better reason than to declutter? It seems to be the #1 way to make one’s house more appealing to prospective buyers, not to mention the fact that it’s free. To avoid the emotional side of things (don’t even get me started, LOL), I remind myself that it’s for the best if we remember that it’s better to move only the things we love rather than haul everything, including junk or excessive “stuff” we don’t actually use or need.

So, I thought I’d share a list of the purging and organizing I’m planning to do before springtime. I’ve got other projects in mind, but this is just the organizational stuff. 🙂

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– Basement. We have an unfinished basement with lots of stuff (and, dare I say, crap). It’s orderly, but it’s easy to just dump one thing at a time that it’s gotten out-of-hand. It’s also quite dark and cold, so you have to find a day that’s relatively warm outside and bright, and most importantly that we’re motivated to work on it. Blah.

– Clothes. Dude. I haven’t even switched out my summer clothes. The best I’ve done is weeded out Had’s 2T stuff for 3T {sniffle}. So, yup. About time!

– Office. I’ve promised Dave that I’d help him purge the office, although the books that we own are all ones that we love and want to keep. It’s more about organization (and a little bit of purging) to make the space work best.

– Closets. We’ve got some closets that are bursting at the seams and others that are housing unimportant stuff. So, yeah. Organize, organize, organize!

– Kitchen Cabinets. At least once or twice a week, I find myself reaching my boiling point over what? Being totally unable to either get a piece of cookware out of out cabinets or get one back in its rightful place. Doesn’t sound maddening, but it really can be. These things were built for people of 90 years ago (which I love), so they just don’t work, size-wise and shelf position-wise. I figure a good purging of unused or unnecessary stuff will help, along with a reorganization.

Do you guys have any clutter cutting going on lately? Does January light a flame under you to work on anything that’s fallen to the wayside? Do tell!

On that note…off to watch Downton Abbey! (It’s only a slightly less abusive to watch than Sherlock. That one takes frickin’ years to put out a new season. Worth it, all around.)

Real Food Challenge – Week One

Since one of my intentions for 2015 is for our family to eat cleaner, less processed foods, it was damn near providence that I saw 100 Days of Real Food‘s 14-week challenge, just in time for the new year. Talk about luck! After running by the weekly challenges with Dave (and having him totally and excitedly on board), I signed up.

So, here’s how it works. I’ll get an email every Thursday for the next 14 weeks (the actual eating challenge will start on Sunday or Monday for 7 days, so there are a couple of days of prep built in). Each email outlines the “rules” for that particular week. It’s up to the participant as to whether or not they’d like to try each week independently or build on top of the prior week. In other words, continue doing the prior weeks while attempting the new weeks, if that makes sense. There’s also a very active Facebook group that’s sharing and answering and supporting.

I’m trying to be flexible in this while still adhering to the rules, so I can’t say whether I’ll be doing the “build-on” method or the “one week at a time” method. I will, however, be following the rules as best I can. To help with figuring out what groceries we need to get weekly, I’m trying to make a loose menu for each week. Here’s this week’s (which is to eat at least two fruits/vegetables with each meal):

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Some explanation: Whole wheat wraps would also include a natural lunch meat like turkey or ham along with the ingredients listed (and probably something more); the sandwich would have a side of things like carrots/cauliflower/peppers to dip into hummus or a healthy ranch; all other items listed are homemade (not canned soup or bought pizza).

We may end up substituting other dinners if we don’t feel like, say, veggie quesadillas or I don’t feel up to making something, but it’ll still be within the rules. Let’s just say we’re all salad people (Hadley’s even into them, with a little ranch) and all of the dinners would include an additional veg on the side. Oh, and you’ll also see that there aren’t always seven items for the week per mealtime; this is mainly because we’ll sometimes repeat a meal (like have oatmeal twice in a work week).

I’ll also have to make some substitutions for our two-year-old. He usually eats pancakes every morning during the work week, so I may continue this but ensuring that it’s a real fruit-based one with a banana or orange slices on the side (although he’ll probably devour a smoothie or omelet on the weekend when we’ve got the time). He’s also not quite at the “chewing a carrot” stage (he takes HUGE bites, so…no) so he’ll get cooked, frozen (organic) veggies along with a sandwich or a ham-and-cheese wrap with extra fruit and veggies.

Check out the above link to see if you’d like to see what the other weeks entail or if you are interested in signing up (better late than never!) There are a zillion ways to make this work for you and your family, so don’t take my loose menu as “the” way. And I hope to let you know how the first week goes next week (Thursday or Friday), along with my menu for the following week.

Happy eating!

Christmas 2014 Recap

Holiday greetings, all! I’ve been in denial about Christmas being over; gotta ease into it like a cold pool, y’know? So, while working hard at avoiding the letdown (let’s face it; it’s depressing) and getting very little done otherwise, I thought I’d share a quick recap of our holiday this year.

Our actual get-togethers were awesome, and we were extremely lucky that gifts were kept in check (and what we did get were so thoughtful, sweet, and useful). By other “green mama” standards, we personally went overboard, I’m sure. By the standards of other parents, we probably did too little. But, for our purposes, it was perfect.

Here are some of the year’s superlatives as far as gifts (although it’s clearly NOT about the presents, but…y’know)…

Best “Free” Present – Dave and I agreed to “get” each other a free gift this year. Mine ended up being a few “gift certificate” type things (like purging/organizing/zen-ifying the office), which are fine but kind of lame. HE, however, made me stationery. Not just normal stationery, though. Included are envelopes and sheets of paper specifically to write Hadley letters, to be opened at special days (or not-so-special) throughout his life. Talk about a tear or two (or a dozen). So. Darn. Sweet. So, yeah. Dave won by a mile.

Hadley’s Gifts – We also ask Hadley what he’d like to get each of us (um, separately…in secret), which is fun. His suggestions for Dave changed daily, although he always went back to, “A car. A real one. Big. For him to drive.” Uh, no. Apparently he suggested the same to Dave for me. (A toy one wouldn’t do.) Finally, he landed on tools, which we picked up individually at Lowe’s, along with a couple of framed pictures for Dave’s desk. Dave proudly bought exactly what Hadley had told him – every day – to get me: red socks and apple pie (a Hostess, which we normally wouldn’t get). It was the sweetest gift, guys, seriously.

Most Successful Toys – Our little guy’s not hard to please. I grabbed some last-minute wooden train tracks to add to his collection (which he’s been using constantly) and any of the Lego sets he received are a huge hit. But, honestly, he seemed to enjoy absolutely everything (even some of the clothes) and is learning the “appreciation” part of the season.

Oh, and I love that he finally has a play knife (and wooden fruit that he can cut), some pie (um, I made more felt food as his “handmade from Mama” annual gift) and Santa’s felt board. I’d do a tutorial for the board, but it’s so simple I’d feel silly. I ended up using my upholstery stapler to staple the background felt on, then cut out simple shapes (you do NOT have to be artistic to do this!) You can even just do shapes; kids don’t care!

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“Made” the Holiday Present – I guess this could be considered a “free” present, too, but the best part of the holiday this year was walking into my mother’s house on Christmas Day to find our out-of-town brother had traveled home to surprise ALL of us (our mom included). I immediately cried. It was insane and perfect. The fact that Hadley is still talking about the family members he now has much stronger connections to (especially Uncle Ryan, the relative that likes to rough house) is heartwarming.

The Grown-Ups’ Favorites – So much of this year was about awesome experiences, I feel guilty picking my favorite gifts. I got an eco-friendly pot from my sister (which was equally touching that she thought about what I’d like rather than just getting another pot) and renewal to Ancestry.com from my mother-in-law, but generally all those practical things (and the books from Dave) touched my heart. Oh, and “turkey joints” (a local candy) is always a super special treat. Oh, and if I had to pick for Dave, I’m pretty sure his set of Batman (the entire 1960s show) was his absolute favorite.

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From our family to yours, we truly hope that you had a glorious holiday full of new and happy memories. I do hope to get myself motivated this week (I’m actually feeling a little rundown, so hope that I can keep it at bay), but if it doesn’t happen until later in January, so be it. Is anyone else feeling like that this holiday season?

New Year Intentions

res-o-lu-tion (n) – a firm decision to do or not do something

in-ten-tion (n) – a thing intended; an aim or plan

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I feel like there’s a big, mildly depressing letdown after all the Christmas cheer and busy-ness has come and gone, and the dull, cold winter ahead can appear daunting. The one bright light in the midst of it all comes from the freshness of a new year, and along with it the opportunity for internal (and external) transformation.

I have nothing against resolutions. I’ve flipped and flopped about whether I’m for or against them, and I know myself well enough to admit, simply, that they’re not for me. The idea behind trying to improve oneself or one’s life is awesome and I’m totally on board for it, but for the sudden, rigid change that is needed to accomplish a resolution is the reason that diets don’t work for many people — it’s so sudden, it’s so strict and all-or-nothing, that it’s near impossible to hold oneself to such high standards, no wiggle room allowed.

So, this year, I’m choosing to make intentions. As you see the definitions above, an intention seems more flexible, less strict, and even a less stressful of a decision. We can aim for a particular goal while making steps, big or small, along the way. It’s definitely a slower, more intentional (see? Intention?) way of hopefully putting forth positive change in your life.

Here are some of my goals and a few of the steps I hope to take as part of this new year:

– Get healthier. I love that this isn’t a specific goal beyond FEELING healthier. A little at a time, I’m hoping to get our diet even cleaner (we’re currently pretty much natural and organic, but still need to eat more ‘real foods’) and have finally told Dave that, yes, we’re going to take part in a CSA when the season comes. It wasn’t worth it, financially, before because much of the stuff we’d be receiving wouldn’t really be eaten by 2/3 of the family. I’m determined to make it work, though, and to start diversifying our diets. Oh, yeah, and I need to get into yoga or SOMETHING again since I’ve fallen off the “exercise for energy” bandwagon.

– Enjoy gardening. I’ve had issues with our garden (last year was a complete failure thanks to neighborhood cats), but I think that if I learn to enjoy the process of gardening, I’ll be more successful with it. That said, I’ll do smaller-level gardening due to the CSA I already mentioned.

– Embrace the happy. This is probably the biggest of them all. I try to do this currently, but being more present and seeking out the simple joys of our family life is a priority that needs to be appreciated. This also involves our quality of life, which means that we may be doing some house hunting and some other changes may be on the way. Even in the midst of changes, though, it’s important to remember that it’s not important to seek out “bigger and better,” but rather to take the everyday miracles to heart.

– Write more and find opportunities to share it. I’ve finished the premise of one children’s book and have one or two stories on simmer, in addition to the writing I do for Green Child Magazine, but would like to find other opportunities to flex those writin’ muscles. It’s something I’ve always enjoyed doing (or else I wouldn’t blog, of course!), so nose to the grindstone! The steps here include regularly hunting for freelance opportunities, searching for writing competitions to enter, researching publishing options, and partaking in writing prompts. Bam.

– Blog focus. I’m still not super happy with the look of this tiny corner of the blogosphere, so I hope to work on the aesthetic. Also, though, I’d like to get the business side of things and, of course, quality content organized. Hand-in-hand with this is the fact that I’ve been slowly but surely saving up for a DSLR camera, so I’m itching to finally buy the thing (and take some online classes to get to know it).

– Continue to simplify. This time of year, we always do a big purge, so that’s nothing that new. However, especially with the thought that we may be moving, I’m hoping to REALLY purge every last thing, keeping only what will truly serve a purpose. Simplification can also be seen figuratively…so, yeah, I hope to do that, too. 😉

What about you guys? Share your resolutions/intentions/goals for 2015 in the comments and we’ll be sure to send you positivity and support for achieving them!

Wordless Wednesday

What better day than Christmas Eve to share a Wordless Wednesday? Here are a few moments from around our house lately…

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Sharing our cookie…

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Making gingerbread boys ‘n girls…

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This last shot is one of two handmade projects for Hadman’s Christmas. I decided not to kill myself over them and chose just ONE type of felt food — he requested “pie” for Christmas, so of course I took him quasi-literally — and a felt board, which I’ll show in the future. Oh, and Santa’s giving the felt board. I’ve given him fake felt food in the past, so it’s clearly a “parent gift.” It’s also pretty cool that we can keep adding to his collection depending on his interests. Oh, and the textured one is apple and the other is blueberry (or use your imagination, really). 🙂

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And, last but not least, our wish to you all. Thanks for reading, and we truly hope that you have a joyful holiday season.

How’re things with you guys? Ready for Christmas? I’ve got a little last-minute wrapping and one quick project to finish, aside from a couple of recipes and probably one or two “oops, forgot that!” loose ends to tie up. We’ll also drop off a neighbor gift and a treat and coffee at the police station before joining one of our family celebrations tonight. Let the fun begin!

Currently / 12.19.14

Hiya, folks! If you’re stopping by from the linky party, thanks and it’s great to see you. Here’s this week’s themes:

I’m currently LOVING the fact that today’s the last day of school before a two-week vacation. Sure, the day’s jam-packed with singing in the teacher’s chorus, squeezing in a quick class, the nerves of having my husband invited into school to do one of his famous readings of “The Polar Express” (and watching my 2-year-old in the process), and my usual classes, but there isn’t a real complaint in the mix. Oh, and I’m even going for one of my 2-3 times-per-year hair cuts tonight. Exciting stuff, people. Ex-citin’.

I’d like to think that READING more would be high on my list of 2015 goals, but I’m trying not to put too much pressure on myself since I always seem to have at least a half dozen books going at a time…and rarely find myself completing a single one. That said, this was shared on FB by one of my librarian buddies (for those that don’t know, I’m a school librarian by day) and sparked my interest. UGH! So many great ideas to go after on that list, but to avoid the inevitable failure, I’ll aim for a handful this year. Maybe that’ll be doable.

Lately, I’ve been CHOOSING between sleep and getting projects done, and guess what’s actually happening. Right. Neither. While I’m waiting for that bolt of energy to strike me motivated, I sit there spinning my wheels while staring at a computer screen (only half getting anything off-topic finished). So, I’ll have to work harder than Santa’s elves to get a couple of the handmade projects I’ve got planned for Hadley done in time!

Hopefully, I’ll be DESIGNING several things in the new year: a new website, re-designing the blog (still doesn’t feel quite right…what do you think?), but most importantly, myself. Internally. Not, like, a superficial makeover, but a total rehab of the good ol’ interior. Mhmm.

WONDERING if I’ll actually have the guts to get some stuff published this year. Wondering if I’ll have the motivation and guts to write more, and to try for some freelance gigs in 2015. Wondering if it really matters. Wondering what my focus needs to be, aside from the usual musts (family and friends). But, more importantly, wondering if we’ll have a white Christmas this year. (We weren’t supposed to last year, but we had an unexpected, unpredicted coating that filled me with joy and excitement. This year, there’s a chance for a storm, but it might include ice and rain, sooooo…)

Do tell! What’re you loving/reading/choosing/designing/wondering currently? I’d love to hear in the comments.

Linking up with the fabulous Ot & Et and Harvesting Kale.

Gingerbread Pancakes

There’s something about molasses. The mere smell or tiny taste of it automatically transports me back to my grandmother’s kitchen. Her spice cabinet was filled with its scent, and I vividly recall sitting on her countertops staring into her bowl of molasses cookie dough (and occasionally giving it a stir). Her soft cookies were a family favorite.

So, it’s no surprise that I’m also a gingerbread fan. Like, huge. My mother once brought gingerbread to celebrate my birthday instead of a cake in college, and it was AWESOME. There’s just something about the spongy, spicy goodness (topped off with homemade whipped cream…always homemade).

I decided to make some of my “mug” pancakes in the gingerbread tradition, complete with (real) butter, (real) syrup, aaaaaand whipped cream. Yep. Let’s just say they’re perfect for your Christmas morning. Oh, and try using some greased cookie cutters on the griddle to make adorably festive shapes!

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Gingerbread Pancakes

1 mugful flour
1 mugful milk
1 egg
about 1/8 – 1/4 c. molasses
1 tsp. cinnamon
sprinkle clove
1/4 tsp. ginger
pinch salt
1 1/2+ tsp. baking powder
1/2 baking soda
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Whisk together dry ingredients and spices. Separately, whisk egg with molasses and vanilla, then add, along with milk, to dry ingredients. Don’t overmix.

Cook in greased skillet or griddle over medium heat in spoonfuls (depending on size you prefer). Flip when you see bubbles appearing.

Top with butter and syrup, cinnamon and sugar, vanilla yogurt, or a dollop of homemade whipped cream (or a variation of any of these).

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These would be a perfect holiday breakfast, along with some sausage or thick-cut bacon and sweet potato hash browns. Hope you enjoy them, too!

Welcome Back, Red

In the early days of my blog, I had a lot of red decor in my house — and I HATED it. So, over the years I neutralized things with a white slipcover, a switch-out of pillows/curtains, and (the best part) a freshly painted no-longer-crimson dining room. I had a huge bias against anything and everything red.

But, now it’s Christmastime again, and I decided to pull out some candy cane colors…mixed with some traditional neutral, vintage and woodsy items, of course. It’s how I do.

I’m a great believer in picking a theme every year. It makes it way easier when I’m looking at the bins of decorations, deciding which to use (can’t possibly use them all in our tiny house). It also helps me flex my creative juices, which I always find fun. I even found a few minutes to string some white and red pom-poms onto some red threat for a homemade garland (to add to a banner that I made in the fall and totally forgot to share with you…so let’s pretend that’s new, too, mkay?).

One of my favorite things is that everything except for that new garland (which was super cheap; under $5 with plenty of materials leftover) were free from our stash. I’ve had a stack of vintage Christmas cards that I bought in VT years ago that my husband loves as much as I do, so I love that I was finally able to pull them out and find a purpose for them. With all of the old-school movies were tend to pull out this time of year (okay, and throughout the year), it’s very “us” to use these, with messages and images that harken back to those lovely, simpler times.

I’ve added a thing here or there since these crappy cell phone pictures were taken, like building up the greens more (had to trim the tree) and I realized that the chunky trim above our built-ins is PERFECT for displaying Christmas cards, like a free ledge shelf.

So, here’s a little view of our Christmas cheer this year.

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Hard to see, but here’s some detail…

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The tree is super simple this year (it’s a Toddler + Cat Tree). Looking through the pictures, I realize how many are personal touches. I grabbed some red books from our upstairs shelves and mixed them with my winter magazine collection. The beautiful, rustic blue painting in the dining room is one Dave did in high school (I know, right?!). We mixed antiques and chalkboards (did a quick reindeer sketch on my $1 board and a surprisingly simple drawing of Nest of Posies’ printable) and some of my favorite all-season accessories (like mercury glass candle holders and switching out vase fillers).

I like to think this mix makes the house feel fun and festive but in a cozy, hint-of-the-modern way. Oh, and I only decorate those few spaces, usually. (No bathroom or even kitchen decor here this year.) What about you guys? Do you decorate the same way every year? Do you try new things or find comfort in the tradition of your favorite pieces? How does your place look this year?

And I totally know I don’t have a tree topper. I’ll actually be talking about that later this week.