The Huntington Christmas 2011

Whew! Now that the last 2 weeks are behind me, it's my turn to just sit and relax and enjoy the Christmas aftermath, lol.  So let me share just a few of the MANY pictures I took.

Here's our girl Hannah (on the left).  She got an e-notebook for a gift, so this was the last we saw of her till dinner. heehee.  And on the right is our other girl Amanda.  She was not feeling well, too many hours at Walmart for the past 3 weeks (plus the cold bug) finally caught up with her.  On Christmas Day! Yuck!

Notice the pretty place setting.  I bought a place setting for 4 new at a store years ago, but then I found the rest at one thrift store in NC and one thrift store in NY.  And the glasses came from a little antique shop in town.  The man on the left is Amanda's hubby Brandon, Chuck is on the end, and then there's my cousin Susie and hubby Gary. 

After dinner, Hannah took the kids to the boys room to play.  (I blurred the edges because I can't show to faces of our foster children).  Hannah had set a headlamp to strobe, and they were taking turns singing and dancing.  And yes, jumping on the bed.  Stupid Santa put candy in their stockings, hahahaha.

Speaking of a sugar rush, holidays are the only time my kids can get away without "cleaning" their plate, and still getting dessert.  Now this is how to eat a cupcake!  Owen likes to eat anything frosted from the top to the bottom.  When he was done, I had green frosting on the chair, tablecloth, and me!

Poor Pee Wee, after a day of being carried, and stepped on, (that's why I carried him), snuck food too, stole food from, and generally played till he dropped.  That was exactly how I felt by the end of the day.  The kids woke us up at 7am, and we finally went to bed at 1am.

I would like to leave you with a little video of Owen(of course) playing the drum set we got him as a gift.  Funny how mom and dad forgot to take it with them when they went home. hmmmmm.

I pray everyone recovers from the holiday madness and remembers to enjoy their many blessings, and get ready for an amazing New Year!

Debbi

Saturday Shopping Link Up - Giving Thanks

All righty, we are now into the month of November, and like I was saying yesterday, let's slow down and enjoy this season before rushing headlong into Christmas.  I know that I will be putting up my outside Christmas lights before Thanksgiving, but I will NOT turn them on until the day after Thanksgiving.  Which is the designated day to go tree hunting.  Amanda wants to start a new tradition, we are all going to pile in our cars and drive up the mountain to a tree farm (not the local tree stand), complete with hay rides and hot cocoa.  Chuck is good with that, as long as he doesn't have to hike into the woods and cut the tree down himself.  We used to do this a very long time ago when my children were very little, and it was such fun, despite the below zero temperatures and snow (it was Buffalo, NY after all).  So before we start our linky party, let's see what I found to share...

Oh my, talk about family memory flashbacks...this is sooooo my mom.  She was a wonderful redhead artist who loved the color orange, and she would have loved these cloth napkins from rearchitect.  No traditional fall colors for her, oh no, she had a bit of orange on everything.  And I do mean everything.  Mom went home in 2000, and I miss her so much that orange has become my favorite color.  I hated it as a teen, but I am drawn to it as if by a magnet now that I'm....well, no longer a teen, heehee.

And since this has turned into a memory post as well as a party post, I was happy to have found this embroidered hand towel by quiltsbydebbie.  You see, my oldest sister, (and my second mother) Kathy helped my mom care for me, since I was the youngest of 6.  I was told that Kathy just claimed me for herself from the day I was born.  Now, Kathy is with mom.  She lost her battle with breast cancer at the too young age of 50, in 2001.  This towel is special because as much as mom loved orange, Kathy was crazy over racoons.  And I do mean crazy, lol.

OK, enough melancholy memories, now to perk things up, I think I'll grab this very cute dog collar from RogueCollars for my Pee Wee.  After all, even our pets deserve to join us in our celebrations, :~D

Ok, now it's your turn....time to search your shops/blogs/whatevers and link up what makes you thankful.  And invite all your friends, snacks and drinks are on me!

Debbi

I love me some Capsteam

I'm taking a stroll one day, thru my Etsy teams, and took a detour to my see my wonderful Capsteam buddies.  Lookie what I found....

Check out these Rhinestone Wedges by Rhinestone Revolution. I had a pair similar to these back in the 70's, and I loved them.  I think I was the only one in high school with a pair like these.  Of course, I lived in the burbs and liked going to downtown Buffalo to shop, which is probably why I was the only one with shoes like these.  I also had platforms with a see-thru bottom that had little plastic fish floating in them, lol.

With the weather getting cooler, my PeeWee could use a sweater vest, like this Knitted Mustard Dog Sweater from the shop of Mailo.  When you have small breeds, especially chihuahuas, I don't care what anyone says, they get cold.  Whenever anyone sits down, PeeWee is on their laps, trying to snuggle under their arms, and just shivers at night.  But I love him!

WOW and WOW.  This Dreams of Atlantis choker is absolutely amazing.  I love summer and I love the beach, and I am definitely putting this on my Christmas wish list.  I don't care what season it is, this choker it IT!  You can find it in the shop of Angelfish Originals.

As many of you may know, I am in the process (haha) of reconstruction work on my home, so unfortunately I am out of shopping time.  But you can find more wonderful things made by wonderful Christian artists by searching for Capsteam members while doing your Christmas gift shopping on Etsy.  If you find something you love, share it in a comment.
Love you and God Bless,
Debbi

Besteam feature on Turquoise Angels

Joni Walker and her daughter Rebecca Finch is the mother/daughter team behind Turquoise Angels, a great Etsy shop filled with goodies for little girls. They have just recently moved, so they are busy busy busy.  I don't envy them, I hate packing and unpacking.  I told my husband that if we ever move again, we are selling our house fully furnished, and buying a house fully furnished. lol.  This team works together to create wonderful tutu's, and clips for little girls.  Here's a peek at their creations.

First up is this Italian Princess Petti Tutu. What pretty colors!  Joni and Rebecca take great care when creating these tutu's.  Quality made, these tutu's were made for fun, and your little girl will surely have fun playing dress up it this.

And how's this for a hair clip?  Their Patriotic French Clip Hair Bow is hand tied and the ends are heat sealed to prevent fraying.  They have a total of 68 hair bows, so if you only wear red, white, and blue in July, check out all the rest.  You will definitely find any style, pattern, or color you need to complete any outfit.

And for that extra special member of your family...there are tutu's for them too.  This Pumpkin Orange Doggy Tutu is just tootoo cute.  (Sorry, had to throw that pun in)  If your little girls best friend is her doggy, they can get matching tutu's. heehee.  Turquoise Angels is now taking orders for flower girl dresses, and have tulle of all colors handy to match your special color theme.  Plus all their tutu's are custom made so be prepared for a 2 week turnaround between placing your order and shipment.

You can keep up with Joni and Rebecca by reading their blog, or follow them on facebook.  So click on any link above and start your holiday shopping early!

Debbi

If you are an Etsy artisan that likes to blog, click here.

If your a blogger that has an Etsy shop, click here.

busy day at mamaw's

Well, I have many errands to run this morning.  First, peewee to the salon.  He may be a cutie, but he's a stinky cutie....

Then off to Hannah's doctor appointment.  Don't let that angelic smile fool you, when her ADHD kicks in, medication is great, lol.

Plus we get Owen today, but he'll arrive while I'm still out, so Poppa will be in charge...uh oh. 
Now with a face like this....what could go wrong? hahaha.
Remember, this is Owen I'm talking about....

He is soooo much fun, but has a very strong will.  Sometimes that's a good thing,  sometimes, not so much.  But I'm pretty sure this is how I will find them both when I get home.

Besteam feature on Turquoise Angels from Etsy

I have been so off schedule since Amanda and crew moved back home. I'm spending all my time playing with my grandson, which is fine with me!
But now it's time to get back to work. And back on track with my Besteam blogs. I've been posting them late the past few weeks, and I'm really sorry for that. But I'm not sorry that I get to talk to y'all about another mother/daughter team on Etsy, Turquiose Angels.

I showed my daughter the adorable tutu's available in this shop, and reminded her that now all I need is a new granddaughter so I can SHOP. I know that they have tutu's for dogs, and my peewee would look so cute,but my husband vetoed that idea, hahaha. Especially since peewee is a male. lol

Now my first favorite find was the SugarPlum tutu. But then I saw this way too cute pink and orange tutu with matching wings. And these hairbows can satisfy anyones craving for color. So run, not walk, to their shop and spoil the little girl in your life, even if it's yourself. They also have a great blog, so leave them a comment whenever you stop by.

Sunday's treasuries

I love spending my sunday afternoons (between church services) checking out the great new treasuries from members of my etsy Capsteam, and Besteam, and anyone that just likes to feature any of our items. ;p And now I will share them with you!!

First I have "For all your needs CAPS team" by kelseystreasure. This treasury features supplies as well as finished items. Next is "kitty cats and birdies". It's curator, Stationarycreations, picked, you guessed it, cat and bird items. So cute. And we have "every leaf" by purplerozelisa, which just happens to include our pretty leaf zippered pouch.

The next three treasuries are:

"CAPS cuddly d's everything dolls and dogs" by beachbabydoll. After all, you're never too old for dolls. Or dogs, lol. And in time for the changing of the seasons check out "Capsteam" by whatshername, containing some great items. And bringing up the rear is my favorite treasury, "falling in love again" by BlueForestJewellry. She not only has great taste in her shop, but in her picks for her treasury. (Yes, she picked us, woohoo. That's Alison's newest creation, the crayon roll). So grab a cup a'joe, (or tea), sit back, and view these great treasuries. And don't forget that ourhometoyours is having an end of summer clearance sale. 50% off is nothing to sneeze at, even with your allergies. lol

hugs to all,

Debbi

besteam turquoise angels

This week I get to talk about a wonderful BESTeam shop with great items made especially for girly girls, Turquoise Angels. This shop is run by a mother/daughter team from Virginia, with a great eye for color and whimsy. While looking at their shop, I had so much trouble choosing which pieces to share with you, so you must stop at their etsy shop and check out everything. Hey, Amanda, I need a granddaughter *hint hint*.

They make great accessories for your outfits, like
this great orange sunburst mum headband.

They have headbands and hair bows of every color that you might need to complete any outfit.

They also do screen printing, look at the detail on this glitter butterfly tank top. So very pretty.

Now for the items they seem to be know for...little girl tutus. Boy, I wish I was a little kid again. The first one here is for the patriotic young girl. What a great dress to wear to that special 4th of July celebration, the Stars and Stripes Salute to America tutu. This will certainly put your little star at the head of the parade.

Next we have this oh so adorable daisy tutu dress. Perfect for the prettiest flower in the garden.

Look at this adorable tutu daisy doll

and me, for your little girl and her bff.

And let's not forget our four-legged children with this doggie diva tinker.

When you stop at their etsy shop, look at the feedback from their other clients. Such high praise, of the quality, and the customer service. You can follow them on their blog, twitter, and facebook.